Pokemon: Unraveling
by MenacingRelic98
Summary: After Red's Raichu is killed by a new, more vicious Team Rocket, and this team goes on to attack Kanto, Red goes on a quest to unite the region champions to fight back and discover just who is leading the new Rocket. He will be forced to come to terms with his Raichu's death...or die trying. Partial image credit to pika09 of Zerochan.
1. Bottled

Pokémon: Unraveling

 **(not so) QUICK WRITER'S NOTE:**

 **This fanfiction takes place in a universe that is basically the events of the GAME universe but with the characters acting more like their MANGA universe counterparts on many levels, as well as Yellow also getting to appear. I wanted to clarify that, to avoid confusion.**

 **They won't be perfectly in tune with their Manga selves due to the differences in the two universes, but keep it in mind. Also note that Red in particular will be particularly out of character due to the nature of the story, and that Blue is more based off the games.**

 **It takes place after the events of all the games' stories, and all the Player characters, whose names are based off the game versions in the manga, or are random in the games are named like this:**

 **Red Ketchum—Gary "Blue" Oak—Leaf Green—Ethan Gold—Brendan Ruby—May "Sapphire" Birch—Dawn Platinum—Barry Pearl—Lucas Diam—Hilda White—Hilbert Black—Nate Ebon—Rosa Ivor—Calem Cross—Serena Yvonne**

 **And, if you happen to be reading this at some point in the distant future, where there are, I dunno, like, thirty generations of Pokémon and 50,000+ total monsters, then please note that this story only includes generations 1-6.**

 **Certain Anime-exclusive characters will make appearances too, but the role in the story they'll have will amount to mere cameos.**

 **And now, with all that said…**

" _ **Bottled" (Red's perspective)**_

Red's Team: Charizard/Vileplume/Lapras/Snorlax/Clefable/(empty)

I was lost in my thoughts on a faceless morning as I stared at the wall of my room again. It was easier to let my mind go blank than to think. After everything that had happened, nearly every thought I had was born of my pain, anger, and agony. Charizard, my first Pokémon, nudged me. He probably hated seeing me like this, but I couldn't face him. It was a reminder that I couldn't protect my Pokémon…my friends. Death…death is one thing. If he had died of natural causes, I would've moved on. If it wasn't to save me, I would've moved on. But this….

* * *

FLASHBACK (1 MONTH AGO) -

Nearly five years ago, when I was 11, I began my Pokémon Journey. Two years after that, I beat the Elite Four and became the champion of Kanto. One more year later, I left the league to train and become even stronger atop Mt. Silver, leaving the champion role to Lance. But another year after that, I experienced something I never had before: Defeat. For the very first time, I was beaten by a trainer. His name was Ethan Gold, and he was the Johto Champion. I wasn't angry or bitter; I was happy. It felt incredible to know that I'm not the strongest, and I have room to grow even now.

I walked through Mt. Moon as I looked for new trainers to battle. I heard someone running from behind me, so I turned. It was, to my utter shock, a member of Team Rocket. The uniform was somewhat altered, but it was still very clearly a team rocket grunt. The grunt gasped when he saw me, but then a wicked smile shot over his face.

"You're that trainer who stopped Giovanni!" the grunt exclaimed.

"Which means that if Team Rocket is back, I can stop them again." I retorted.

"Not a chance! Cause of you, Rocket can't hide in the shadows anymore, so we're going full offensive!" the grunt snorted. He reached into his pocket. I expected a Pokémon and sent out Raichu, the first Pokémon I ever captured, but instead he pulled out a gun.

"Huh?!" I yelled, taken aback.

"We don't need to be subtle now! Only reason we didn't kill back then was cause it would bring too much attention! And when I kill you, the new boss will make me a general!" the grunt laughed. He cocked the gun.

"No!" I screamed. I cowered as I heard the gunshot, but as I looked back up, I was unharmed. There was blood on my body and face, but no wound. I didn't even know where the bullet went…until I looked at my partner, Raichu.

"R-R-RAICHU!" I screeched. I kneeled beside his body, but didn't touch him. I was in shock.

Raichu was going to die. Yet, he saved me again. As the grunt prepared another shot, Raichu used thunder on me. I was shot right out of the cave. I laid on the ground and trembled before passing out.

FLASHBACK END-

* * *

The memory made me scream automatically. I went into a fit. I consumed me for a time like it always did. I screamed and yelled and thrashed and bit and choked and I couldn't save him couldn't save him couldn't save him couldn't save him cou—

…..

After I snapped back into reality, the clock showed that it had been nearly twenty minutes.

" _It's getting worse."_ I thought. I was prone to screaming fits more and more as time went on. I should probably get help….

I've been living in my room since the incident. I hadn't come out since Leaf broke off the relationship. I knew it wasn't healthy but I felt like I had no other choice. My mom was on vacation when this was all happening, so she wasn't here. I stayed away from my friends; after what happened with Leaf, I figured it'd be best if I didn't burden them with my issues.

They probably don't want to hear it, anyway.

I picked up the remote to turn on the TV. I heard Charizard approach me.

"Chaaar?" he grumbled. I patted his head.

"I'm sorry, buddy. It's not your fault. I'm sorry that I'm not a better trainer. You deserve better than this." I moaned, my voice a bit raspy from the screaming. He looked at me with sad eyes that warranted attention but that it felt painful to gaze into. I hugged him for a bit before glancing at the TV.

As I looked at the channel, it was just depressing news.

"We bring you now to Mike in Ceurlean City—"

I picked up the remote to change the channel.

"—where Team Rocket is staging the equivalent of a full on war."

I stopped and dropped the remote.

"Thanks. As you can see, Tyson, Team Rocket is not playing around. They've brought all kinds of weapons ranging from machine guns to rocket-propelled grenade launchers, and are using them in conjunction with Pokémon to destroy the city."

I started breathing heavily, with an automatic force taking hold.

"The death toll is already estimated to be about 157 people and 113 Pokémon. There is no end in sight."

I whispered words that I can't remember, but were filled with raw anger and fear. My hands shook as my eyes widened.

"All I can hope is that the recently-arrived military can stop this massacre. Tyson, back to—UGH!" A sword was rammed through the reporter's chest. As the sword was drawn and the lifeless body fell, I saw the man who killed him standing. It was the man who murdered my Raichu.

* * *

I punched the TV screen with my bare fist.

"ARCEUS! GOD! WHATEVER YOUR DAMN NAME IS!" I screamed.

A pause. "Why…why do you let this happen? They killed my friend…and they're killing everyone else's friends. Why do you let them? What did we do to you?"

"DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS FEELS LIKE?! DO YOU?" I was screaming again, an incomprehensible feeling sweeping over me. I gazed at my hands.

"…I won't let this happen."

"I WON'T LET THIS HAPPEN!"

I had to stop this. Not just for myself, but for the other people who never asked for this out there. Was that a pipe dream?

…No. I already had the skills I needed. I was trained as well. After all, if the trainer was weak, so too were his Pokémon.

* * *

FLASHBACK (7 MONTHS AGO) -

Elite Four Koga lunged at me without warning, using a straight kick. I did an evasive flip, and then countered with a heavy chop. Koga weaved out of the way, with the chop barely even grazing him. He used a low sweep kick, but I jump kicked him in the face. He fell backward but did a cartwheel to recover. I sprinted to him and then blocked his jab combo. I retaliated with a quick jab to the face and tried to kick him in the stomach, but he caught my leg and threw me against a wall. I went into a handstand to catch myself, and flipped back up. Koga went with a claw style strike as he lunged at me, but I stopped his hand and got a few powerful punches to his stomach. He used a drop kick, a risky maneuver, which certainly meant he was tiring. I barely twisted out of the way, but it was enough. I pinned him against the floor and held a hand ready to chop to his throat.

"Yield!" I yelled. Koga paused.

"I concede." He said with a smile. I smiled too, and helped him up.

"You have done well and opened to my training. You now possess the speed and skill of a ninja." Koga announced.

"Yeah! I gotta say, training with you was far more interesting than building muscle with Brock, perfecting accuracy with Lieutenant Surge, or even sharpening mental acuity with Sabrina." I said.

"Perhaps, but all are important. You are quite a strong human now, Red, and as strong as your Pokémon are now, this means they can grow ever stronger. Keep your skills sharp, my student." Koga explained. We shook hands and I departed.

FLASHBACK END-

* * *

In all honesty, I hadn't kept up with my training since the trauma. Still, I had muscle, skills, wit, and—for the first time since Raichu's death—will. It was a bittersweet joy to feel like I was more than a living corpse again, but it was enough. I had the will….

But it would still take more than me. I can't do this alone. With the guns and more members, Team Rocket was too powerful to defeat as a single trainer. Me and my Pokémon are strong, but just not enough….

"But there's no one more powerful than me—" I muttered before stopping. There _are_ people stronger than—or at least strong as—me. Region champions like Ethan Gold, Brendan Ruby, Dawn Platinum, Hilda White, and Serena Yvonne. I would bring them together. I would stop Team Rocket. I would save everyone's souls.

I gathered what I would need. I put on my backpack, grabbed my wallet, adjusted my hat, and grabbed some Full Restores for the road.

I turned to a gift given to me by Lieutenant Surge, a smaller rifle that could also hold an explosive. I really didn't want to bring it; I felt like it would make me like them. But I wanted to keep my friends safe. Measures had to be taken.

"Let's go, buddy. We have a mission." I announced to Charizard after packing.

"Hrrrrr?" Charizard grumbled, looking at me. He seemed a bit happy that I was trying to do something again. On his back, I flew to a Pokémon Center to withdraw a new Pokémon for my team. After looking through them, I decided on a tough-as-nails fighting type, Hitmonlee.

Team Rocket would pay, and people would be kept safe. That's what I wanted. That's why I was doing this.

….right?

 _ **To be continued**_

* * *

 **Guys, I REALLY need some reviews here. I've wanted to try this kind of story for a while and I really want it to be good! Any and all feedback is sorely desired!**

 **Thanks for reading! I'll see you all next time, and for now I take my leave.**


	2. Panic

" _ **Panic" (Red's perspective)**_

Red's team: Charizard/Vileplume/Lapras/Snorlax/Clefable/Hitmonlee

I landed in New Bark Town and hopped off my Charizard. I took a look around. There were several houses nearby, so I checked them out. I didn't know my way around the area, and I grew quite impatient after a time. However, after enough searching, I eventually found the house of Ethan Gold. I walked up and knocked on the door. It opened, with a woman in her early forties behind it, presumably his mother.

"Are you Mrs. Gold?" I asked.

"Yes. Are you looking for my son?" The woman replied.

"Where is he?" I asked, my delivery quick and automated.

"Uh…with Lyra in the next house." Mrs. Gold stated, a bit put off. I walked away immediately and quickly walked to the house. I knocked on the door, and a brunette girl with pigtails greeted me.

"I need to see Ethan Gold." I repeated.

"Um, could you come back later? We are _totally_ kicking the butts of some noobs in this match of Do—"

"I need to see him NOW." I snapped, a little harder than I meant to.

"Geez! Why are you being such a-"

"You don't understand! There are people dying! I don't have time to waste! Please get him for me right now!" I thundered, hysteria creeping into my voice. She backed up slowly, fear evident in her eyes. Ethan ran up behind her.

"Lyra, what's going on?" Ethan shouted.

"T-That guy wants to s-see you…." Lyra stammered. Ethan approached me.

"Who the hell do you think you—" he paused for a moment.

"…Red?" Ethan asked.

"Hello. Ethan, right? I know we haven't spoken much, but I need your help." I declared immediately.

"Geez man, you talk like a rocket. Slow down and tell me what you want." Ethan suggested.

"Alright, alright. I'm sure you've heard about the resurgent Team Rocket. They're trying to take over Kanto. I can't stop them alone. I need help." I explained hurriedly.

Ethan stared for a moment. "Okay, fair enough. One question."

"Yeah?"

"Why are you being such a dick?"

I paused. "Look, lives are on the line. I can't avoid being unsubtle. I wasn't going to waste time with shenanigans. But will you help?" I could feel the franticness returning to my throat, and tried to breathe a little.

"It DOES sound really fun…but I have nice things now. I can't afford to be that reckless." He answered, beginning to smirk.

"….well, forgive me for being so harsh," I started, a fiery rasp finding its way into my words, "but Johto is Kanto's neighbor, and if I can't stop them, they'll come for you."

Ethan paused for a moment. His smirk faded from his face, and he turned to me.

"You and all your 'nice things.'" I jabbed.

"I can protect them. My friends, my family, my Pokémon. They're safe with me." He asserted with a rebellious force.

"No. Dear god no! You have no idea! Maybe you could protect them from a few criminals, hell, even many criminals, all with guns, mind you, IF you knew they were coming. But not a fucking army! And even then, what? Are you just going to live the entire rest of your life on your guard? Do you WANT that for the people you care about? Because they only have three ways outta this; Dead and buried, on their guard for the rest of their lives, or safe when we stop the root of the problem!" I ranted.

I began to pant afterward, and noticed I had not stopped to take a breath at any point. My worry about this must've shown, because Ethan seemed to know.

"Are….you okay? I mean, we never spoke much, but on the mountain you at least looked…I dunno…serene? You seem really rattled." Ethan asked, a worried smile on his face.

I searched my mind for an answer, but nothing reasonable came into my mouth. I didn't know if I should cast a lie or reveal the truth. I mean, would that help convince him? Was it just about convincing him? I guess I never thought about it, but I never meant to tell any of them what was happening to me. I didn't know what to do….

"Okay? I…would say no. Things are…uh…." I fumbled, searching for an answer.

I sighed guiltly.

"Look, this is just so dangerous to so many people. It has me paranoid. I'm sorry for flying off the handle a bit. I do have to visit ton of places though, so I also don't have much time to waste. Could you please lend me a hand?" I answered.

"Yeah, I guess I should help. You need guys like me! Besides, I always wanted to know you better." Ethan agreed, a smirk coming to his face again.

"Wha-?! Ethan! He said this involves guns and warfare! I mean, this is like, ten times bigger than Team Rocket used to be! You could die doing this! And what about your mom?!" Lyra shouted.

"I don't want people to get hurt. Just tell my mom I'm going to catch some new Pokémon, kay?" Ethan replied.

"Good luck." Lyra managed, her voice shaking and eyes already beginning to water. The two friends hugged, and then Ethan left with me.

* * *

We flew on our flying Pokémon to a port town, my Charizard and his Skarmory respectively. I began walking to a travel boat and Ethan followed suit.

"So, where we headed, o' fearless leader?" he sang.

"Hoenn Region. I'm going to collect all the region champions for this one." I replied.

"Aw sweet! I've never been to Hoenn. I wonder what it's like." Ethan mused.

"Eh. All I've heard about is too much water." I reported.

"Pffft. Where did you get that from, the Interregional Gateway Notes Company?" Ethan joked.

"IGN? Oh god no. Never, not a chance." I blurted, laughing a bit.

We had a back and forth like this for a while. I was originally very wary of his reckless, cocky nature, but honestly, he was a blast to hang with. He knew how to talk to people, and always had good jokes, as well as some truly awful ones. It seemed, for a while, like it was easy to forget the vast, swirling mess of ugly feelings in my head.

After a while, that started to hit me. I remembered the good times I had with Blue, even though he could be a real dick sometimes, and the time I shared with Leaf, and the moments I experienced with Yellow.

I reimagined the thrill of meeting new people. Brock, one of the Gym Leaders, for instance, wasn't much older than me, and after I got my first badge we just straight up hung out for a bit. Actually, he even offered to go with me on my journey. He had wanted to be a Pokémon Breeder, and thought of travelling with me as a good way to start that goal. I turned him down, wanting my journey to be my own, but it was a good day, and we still kept in touch.

"REEEEEEEED!" Ethan yelled into my ear. I jumped back a bit.

"For the love of Moltres, what?" I snapped.

"Easy, easy. You just really spaced out there for a sec." Ethan explained.

I sighed. There was a long pause in our conversation.

"You sure you're feeling okay? I mean, you seem better now than before but you're still acting really strange." Ethan asked. He looked at me with a caring look.

"I mean, I said I wasn't…."

"Well, yeah, but it didn't seem like all of it to me.

I sighed again. "It's complicated." I responded. His face took an unexpectedly more serious expression.

"Look, I don't want to be rude, but whatever it is, it's weighing you down. And that's okay; people go through shit all the time, and it can really throw them off. But that's the problem. If we're gonna fight an army, and you're leading the attack, then me and everyone else who agrees to this needs you with us one-hundred percent." Ethan cautioned. A smile returned to his face.

"Besides, I think you're pretty cool so far and don't wanna see you hurting."

I nodded. "I'm not really sure if you could help, honestly…but thanks. That's some good advice."

He smiled, and left to go get something to eat.

* * *

I learned many tricks from my self-training, and one of them was meditation. I honestly never really thought about using it before, but now was a good chance. Ethan was right; I needed to put my head back in the game

I entered a private room and sat down in the middle of the floor. I folded my legs properly relaxed my arms, sat upright but comfortably, and shut my eyes. I began to just breathe, and my head cleared. I established a rhythm to my breathing first before I dug into myself. I peeked into my own mind….

I saw Raichu smile at me. I saw Mountain Moon. I saw….

I saw….

I saw….

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" I screamed. I screamed and screamed, a demon in my heart that only the noise of my agony could release. I looked at my hands, trembling and twitching, and balled them into fists. I punched the walls until my fists bled, covered in blood like when I tried to hold Raichu after I failed to save him save him save him savehimsavehimsavehimsavehimsavehimSAVEHIM—

"Why….couldn't it…be me….." I felt myself whisper as I blacked out.

* * *

I woke up in a new, white room aboard the boat, a room I didn't recognize. A quick glance at my surroundings told me this was a medical clinic. I turned my head, and immediately Ethan rushed to my side.

"Holy crap Red! I mean…uh…you're not seriously injured, are you? You're alright?" He looked at me like he wanted to say more, but was waiting for me.

"N-no…not wounded…." I managed.

"Good. Now tell me what the hell is—"

The nurse walked in, cutting off Ethan mid-sentence.

"Mr. Ketchum, we believe you suffered some kind of panic attack. Has this ever happened to you before?" she asked.

I paused. "Um…."

Ethan glared at me.

"…..yes." I said softly.

"Do you see a psychologist or a psychiatrist?"

"No."

The nurse just stared for a second.

"Well you should. This seems rather severe. We can't do anything else for you, but please try to take it easy. You have arrived at your destination."

"Thanks." I mumbled.

* * *

As Ethan and I got off the ship, he looked at me, but I kept my head down. After walking for a while and entering a city, he got in front of me and stared with a stern look.

"Mind explaining what the hell happened? I was really worried!" Ethan yelled.

I began to stutter, unsure of what to say. "I…um…uh…."

"Look Red, I want to help you, hell, I NEED to help you so we can succeed, but I can't if you won't let me!" Ethan shouted. He stared at me a bit before continuing.

"Okay, so we don't know each other super well. That's OK. It's fine. But listen, when you have shit like this going on, it's always better to tell someone. I know I'm not a super close friend or anything ideal, but I'm the best you got right now, and you NEED to tell someone. Let me help you!" Ethan pleaded.

I knew I had to concede.

"Alright. Listen, I—"

I noticed Hoenn League Champion Brendan Ruby alongside a female, probably May Birch. They chatted in front of a restaurant. It was closer to sunset than sunrise, and it suggested that they were potentially planning dinner.

"Ethan, I hate to do this to you, but Brendan, twelve o'clock." I said, pointing.

Ethan turned to see this for himself.

"We're talking later." He affirmed. We proceeded toward the two trainers of Hoenn.

"Excuse me, but I need a word with Mr. Ruby." I started. They both turned to me.

Brendan immediately rolled his eyes and began to glare. He adjusted his glasses and crossed his arms.

"Look, I'm not doing autographs, I'm not doing a contest deal, and I'm sure as hell not doing an impromptu championship battle. Now please leave me be." Brendan chided.

I could already tell that this was going to be "fun".

"I'm sorry to bother you, and to tell you that this has nothing to do with any of that—"

"Then what DOES it have to do with?" He was impatient and defensive. Granted, paparazzi will do that to anyone, but I didn't want to put up with it.

"It has to do with saving lives, Brendan." I asserted. He paused, his eyes betraying his embarrassment, but he collected himself quickly.

"I apologize for my…coarse behavior a moment ago then, and am equally sorry that I must turn you down." He announced.

"Look, I can get being busy, Region champs to region champs, but we reeeeeeeaaaaally need your help." Ethan interjected.

"Region Champions?"

Ethan grinned. "Red of Kanto and Ethan of Johto." He explained, pointing to me and himself respectively.

May spoke up. "It's not a business issue. He would go if it were only that." She stated.

"Is it a looooooooooooooooooove issue?" Ethan teased.

"No. It's a personal issue." May growled, rolling her eyes.

I continued. "Look, many lives are on the line and—"

"I am really, truly sorry. I really am. But I just can't go." Brendan insisted.

I hung my head down in failure. Was that it? I needed to get them on my side. So, I did the one thing I could. I challenged them to a Pokémon Battle.

"Huh?" They both shouted. Ethan also looked on with a bit of shock.

"A Pokémon battle! If I win, you have to help me…and if I lose, I'll help you instead!" I shouted. The two looked at each other and then back at us.

"I detest battling to a degree, but, since you don't seem like liars, I'll indulge you. May, are you ready?" Brendan said, adjusting his glasses with a smirk.

"As always." May replied with a grin.

* * *

Ethan sent out his Pokémon first: Kabutops. I backed it up with my Vileplume. Brendan sent out Mighyena, while May sent out Aggron. Ethan had his Kabutops set up Stealth Rock. I had Vileplume follow suit, and used Leech Seed on the more dangerous Aggron. Mightyena used Crunch, wounding Vileplume, and Aggron set up his own rocks.

Mightyena lunged at Vileplume with Night Slash, knocking it out. Kabutops used Surf at that very moment, dealing heavy damage to both opposing Pokémon. Aggron used Heavy Slam on Kabutops, dealing moderate damage. I sent in Lapras at that moment, who took damage from Aggron's Stealth Rock.

Mightyena defeated Kabutops with another Night Slash, but Lapras used surf, which made both Aggron and Mightyena faint. Brendan sent in Metagross, May sent in Flygon, and Ethan sent in Absol. All three took Stealth Rock damage.

The battle went back and forth like this for quite a bit, until only Brendan and I remained each with one final Pokémon. Ethan grinned.

"You don't stand a chance now! Red's got one hell of a Rai—"

I sent in Hitmonlee, trying to hide the shame in my eyes.

"—monlee…what?" Ethan said, confused. He seemingly took a moment to contemplate why I had removed my star Pokemon from my lineup. Meanwhile, Brendan sent in Hariyama. Fake Out was my immediate choice, dealing some scratch damage to the opposing Pokemon. Hariyama went into Belly Drum, and Hitmonlee's High Jump Kick took advantage of this, winning the fight.

"What?!" Brendan yelped. May seemed genuinely impressed. Meanwhile, Ethan's face held a panicked expression.

"There….I won…now help me save them." I muttered as hysteria creeped into my voice once again.

"Red….?" Brendan asked, seeing the swirl of emotions cover my face.

"HELP ME SAVE HIM!" I screamed.

And that was the last thing I remembered before blacking out.

* * *

 _ **To Be Continued….**_

 **Time to address some reviews!**

 **To Caleb Phoenix – Thanks for the support! I'll try my absolute best!**

 **To Commander M – Thanks for the review, but I sadly have to burst your bubble. While the elements of Silver's backstory from the Manga are very interesting and I am more partial to them, Silver himself will not feature prominently in this Fanfic. If he were, I would jump all over your advice, but sadly he will not. I'm sorry if this disappoints you, but I hope you can still enjoy my fic!**

 **To Subject 666 - Well, Ebony and Ivory because Black and White were taken and Nate Lacktwo doesn't exactly roll off the tongue.**

 **On that note, though, I should explain that I will have seven primary characters by the time the team is done assembling. They are:**

 **Red (obviously)**

 **Ethan/Gold**

 **May/Sapphire (you'll see why it's not Brendan in the next chapter)**

 **Dawn/Platinum**

 **Nate/Lack-Two**

 **Serena/Y**

 **Wally**

 **And trust me, though that last one seems like an extraordinarily odd choice, it's going to be great.**

 **Thanks for reading, and for now, I take my leave.**


	3. Wind Fury

" _ **Wind Fury" (Ethan's perspective)**_

Ethan's Team: Typhlosion/Kabutops/Tyranitar/Skarmory/Bellossom/Gengar

I knew that Red was suffering from some kind of nervous stress or mental condition, but he wouldn't tell me anything. I mean, I guess I couldn't blame him; we didn't know each other super well. But then, usually the issues weren't so…all-consuming.

My eyes darted around the Pokemon Center waiting area. I brought Red here after…what happened. As I struggled to remain still in the wooden chair, which jabbed into my shoulder blades, I began to worry about what was taking so long. I took him here at night, and I even slept here. Was he really just napping at this point? Or was it a more serious issue? My foot began tapping faster than a Ninjask and I found myself squeezing my hands together. Then, I stopped.

" _Damn, I can't remember the last time I was this nervous."_ I thought.

I let out a large sigh, and slumped over in the chair. The chair's frame only dug further into my skin.

" _Stupid fucking chair…"_

I got up, opened the window, and, seeing a garbage bin directly below the window, promptly threw the chair out.

A nurse ran up to me with anger.

"What on earth did you do?" she shouted.

"All I did was you a favor, miss." I said with a wink before sitting down in a more comfortable chair.

As the nurse stormed away, my smile faded as I began to think. I still didn't know what was happening to Red, but it made sense that it would be about his Raichu. It wasn't in his team when it always was, it was the first Pokémon he ever caught according to an interview he had as the champion, and in many ways it was his signature Pokémon. It would also make sense that he would be this beat up ab—

" _Oh my god, is it dead?"_

I paused thinking about it. I mean, I tossed the idea around earlier, but never really considered it. The more I thought about it now, though, the more it felt like an inescapable truth. Red's screams of "save them" and "save him" made so much more sense if Raichu's gone. It also meant that Team Rocket—er, the New Team Rocket—were Raichu's…killers!

" _KILLERS!"_

That's the part where THAT hit me. I mean, it's one thing to lose a Pokémon—Lyra lost her Sentret to a nasty disease a while back—but it's gotta be wholly different than losing one to a murderer. One backed by an army. And still out there. And hurting and killing other people right now.

" _A killer doing to them…what was done to Red…"_

I let out another, long sigh, and decided to hope I was wrong.

* * *

May and Brendan came to see me at around seven forty-five, and I didn't know what to expect. Red had broken down in front of them, becoming incomprehensible and nearly attacking Brendan. I took it upon myself to get Red away from the scene and to the Pokémon Center. He still hadn't woken up….

"He's unstable, you know." Brendan stated. I glared at him.

"Thank you, sir, for that inciteful news." I hissed.

"Er…sorry. I didn't mean to be rude. I just meant that he really shouldn't be out here doing what he's trying to do." Brendan clarified.

"Yeah. I mean, emotions are powerful things. When a feeling comes over me…well…I just have to run with it, and it seems like he's the same way. Except, ah, kinda…I mean, I don't wanna say 'broken'…" May added.

I paused. "At this point I would tell him I'd do it myself if I could. But I don't think he'd back out."

"Doesn't seem like the type, honestly." May agreed with a smile.

"It's more than that. He hasn't told me everything yet, but I'm certain this is personal to him. Personal and scarring."

May and Brendan both seemed saddened and sympathetic, which put me at ease a bit.

"You'll understand that we have to leave, but we hope everything goes well—" Brendan managed before being cut off by a buzzing noise. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone, visibly nervous upon seeing the caller ID. He answered it.

"Hello?"

"Look, I'm sorry. Something personal came up. I'll get ba—"

"I can't always be there at the drop of a hat, you kn—"

"You can't do that! You'd be violating our agreement!"

At that point, even I could hear screaming coming out of Brendan's phone.

"NO! STOP! STOP HURTING HIM! PLEASE!" Brendan was screaming now, terror locked on his face.

"Alright, alright, I'll make more time…goodbye, sir."

Brendan hung up.

* * *

Well, that didn't sit well with me.

"What the hell was that all about? Are you involved with the Mafia or something?!" I shouted.

"No, it's…" Brendan said, pausing, "…none of your business."

"Well, I came here to save people, and it seems like someone needs saving, so it _is_ my business!" I retorted.

Brendan's lips curled into a modest smile. "That's a nice sentiment…."

He looked down, and his face shifted into a guilty scowl.

"…but there's nothing you can do. I have to go." Brendan stated. He sent out his Latios from the Poke Ball, and flew away on its back.

* * *

I took a long pause before turning to May, who seemed worried and stressed in her own right.

"So, I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that this relates to your 'issues' that prevent Brendan from leaving." I said, smirking a bit. May rolled her eyes.

"Good work, Sherlock. It was quite a confounding puzzle." She announced sarcastically.

We both stood there for a moment, caught in an awkward silence perpetuated by the lingering gravity of the situation.

"You know…back in Johto, the lab guys call me the Strategist for a reason." I hinted.

"The same reason they actually call you the Hacther?" May retorted. I looked back at her with a bit of shock.

"C'mon, a girl can't do her research?" May jested.

I smiled and continued. "Be that as it may, my point is I could really help you guys out if you gave me the chance."

"Brendan wouldn't like it. He always tries to find an easier, lower risk solution. No offense, but we don't know you very well, and you seem like a loose cannon."

"Well, maybe if we're gonna save whoever it is, we have to get a bit scrappy." A wide grin rose to my face, and May grinned in kind.

"Alright, fine. But you asked for it!"

We moved to a more private area, and May laid out some materials in front of me. Mostly, these were assorted papers. Some of them seemed to be propaganda or advertising posters, but I initially ignored them in favor of the blueprints I noticed under a random doodle. I grabbed the prints and began analyzing them as May told me the situation.

"So, to put it simply, there's a new kid on the block in terms of criminal teams named Team Ventus. They want to bring about "the justice of the godly winds" or something. Basically, they wanna kill a lot of people." She explained. I looked up at her briefly.

"Any relation to the New Rockets?" I asked.

"It seems likely from where I stand, but I don't know for sure."

She continued. "They're still really small but also ruthless and smart, so they kidnapped Brendan's little brother, Max, and we've been forced to help them and ignore their crimes. Our job is to get Max and get out safely. I really haven't found a way to—"

"Is this the master air conditioning?" I interrupted, pointing to a spot on the blueprints.

May leaned over to look at it and nodded.

"And this is the control room?" I asked, pointing to another spot, one near the first.

"Yup." May affirmed.

"Alright, I got a plan."

May did a double take.

"WHAT? How on earth do you have a plan from just that?!" She yelled.

"Let me tell you…"

* * *

"So, you are going to go to the master AC controls and make it cold. Make the building freezing! This is really important." I started.

May gazed at me skeptically. "Uh-huh."

"Alright, then, disable, or hack, or something, the cameras in the hall connecting the AC room to the Control room. When you do that, you'll give me a signal. Like, text me or something."

"Yup." May buzzed disinterestedly.

"At that point, I'll send in Gengar to take the control room, which would normally be an issue; Gengar can turn invisible but lowers air temperature. But, with the building so cold already, the guards will hardly notice, and Gengar can take the control room like a ninja!" I exclaimed.

May's jaw dropped and her eyes widened.

"Holy shit! That was actually kinda brilliant!" She cheered.

"At that point, I'll meet up with Gengar and secure an exit, while you and Brendan go free Max, and then we all get the hell out of there!" I finished.

"Sounds solid as a Geodue. Can't wait." May applauded.

* * *

After we managed to convince Brendan that this was a good idea and that I could help, we headed off to the Ventus Base. Brendan and May were permitted to enter, but I had to wait outside, hidden from view.

" _Hmm…I wonder how long they'll take…."_

I began playing Angry Birds on my phone, to which my Gengar, already out of his ball, laughed.

"Screw you, the game's fun." I retorted with a pout. I looked back down at the phone, and began to slingshot a bird when the phone buzzed, jostling my aim and sending the bird unceremoniously into the dirt.

" _Really? Just my luck…."_

I exited the game to check my messages. A new text appeared from May's number.

"acs up. send in geng." It read.

I smiled and turned to Gengar. "Remember the plan? It's showtime, buddy!" I announced. Gengar let out a wide grin and turned invisible as he phased through the base's wall.

I waited exactly five minutes, then ran in through the front door. Two guards were still stationed there, and they turned to face me. I sent out Typhlosion and Skarmory, and each of the guards sent out a Bronzong. I lifted a telescoping baton out of my bag (usually, I use it to deploy Pokémon in awesome ways) and extended it.

"You want a battle? Here's a war!" I yelled as I charged the guards.

The first one swung at me with a left hook. I dodged under it and aimed to kick his legs. He did his best to dodge but it was more than enough to trip him. The second guard lunged at me with a knife, and I weaved out of the way of the blow.

At the same time, Typhlosion began the battle using Eruption, which did massive damage to the opposing Bronzong but not enough to KO it. It retaliated with Gyro Ball, slamming Typhlosion into the wall and wailing on him there. It continued to mercilessly beat down Typhlosion, but he shook it off and knocked the Bronzong away with Flamethrower.

I continued dodging the repeated jabs of the knife and, finding an opening, knocked it out of the guard's hands. I knocked him onto the ground with my baton and hit him again once he was down to KO him. The first guard tackled me into the ground, and I hit it hard. He pulled out a knife and was about to stab my face. I tensed and tried to move my head, but Typhlosion burned the guard with Flamethrower, deafeating him.

"Hahahaha! Thanks buddy! That was AWESOME!" I yelled as I hugged my fiery friend. I turned to Skarmory, who squawked loudly in victory over his opponent.

"You were great too, buddy! Now come on, we gotta go save Max!" I exclaimed. I met up with May, Brendan and Gengar, who were escorting a small child in a green shirt. He wore nice glasses and had hair that was dark as mine.

"You must be the champ I've been hearing so much about!" I greeted, smiling to Max.

"Y-yeah. You're a friend of my brother's, right?" He stuttered.

"Well…" I began. I had only just met Brendan and May—

"Yes. Absolutely." Brendan said immediately. I turned to him and May, who both nodded at me. I nodded in reply with a smile.

"C'mon guys, let's make a break for it!" I shouted. The group of us made a mad, frantic dash for the exit, with Typhlosion, Gengar, May's Blaziken, and Brendan's Sceptile blasting any goons trying to stop us away.

Eventually, I could make out the exit.

" _Almost…."_

I could feel my heart tightening with nervousness and determination.

" _Almost…..!"_

I could make out a large man trying to block the doorway.

" _COME ON!"_

We all ran out the door, hopped immediately on our flyers, and returned our other Pokémon to their balls. Flying at a breakneck pace, we went back to the Pokémon center we left Brendan at and our flyers skidded against the ground trying to slow down.

We all hopped off.

* * *

"YAHOOOO! That was amazing!" I screamed. May and I hugged and fist-bumped, and I hugged Brendan as well, who just seemed a bit surprised.

Later, we reconviened with a now-awake Red. May excitedly told him about everything that happened, and he seemed to let out a small smirk.

"Hey…May…Brendan…I'm sorry for….earlier." Red apologized.

"Don't worry about it!" May affirmed.

Brendan looked down. "You'll have to forgive me, but I still can't go on your journey. I must stay in Hoenn to protect Max…." Brendan said, looking down.

"How about I go with them?" May suggested. Brendan looked at her with surprise.

"That's—well…yeah, that's a great idea May. Just….be safe." Brendan managed, a bit worried but also happy.

We prepared to board the ship for Sinnoh later that day. Brendan hugged May goodbye and approached me.

"Thank you so much." He smiled.

"Anytime and everytime." I replied.

"Just…keep an eye out for May. She's important to me. And…try to help Red. He really needs it." Brendan asked.

I nodded, and turned for the boat.

"Hope to see ya again!" I yelled. I waved at Brendan and saw him waving back as I entered the boat.

* * *

 _ **To be continued**_

 _ **...**_

 _ **...**_

 _ **Sorry this took so long, guys! I was busy, and will try to upload the next chapter in much quicker fashion. I hope you all enjoyed this one!**_

 _ **Calem Phoenix – Thanks for those kind words on chapter 2! Chapter 1 was really just setup, so I'm glad Chapter 2 shined.**_

 _ **Thanks for reading, guys, and for now, I take my leave.**_


	4. Money Talks

" _ **Money Talks" (Red's perspective)**_

Red's team: Charizard/Vileplume/Lapras/Snorlax/Clefable/Hitmonlee

May's team [you haven't seen it fully]: Blaziken/Aggron/Flygon/Breloom/Manetric/Crawdaunt

* * *

I looked out over the vast ocean on the deck of the boat. I felt like a criminal or abuser, and I didn't want my frie—allies …to see me like this. Partly, it was because I never told Ethan the truth, instead weaseling my way out of the issue. Partly, it was because of how I acted towards May and Brendan. Mostly though, it was because I felt guilty towards my treatment of Hitmonlee. I mean, the first time in forever that I use him in a fight, and I break down in anger and tears when he _wins_? I was failing him.

"If any divine force is listening," I whispered to myself, "do what you must to me, but please let me love, care for, and protect my partners in the way they deserve." I began crying softly. I took a few deep breaths and sent out Hitmonlee. He deserved an apology.

"Mon…." He grunted, looking down.

"Hey buddy, I just…I just wanted you to know…" I assured, tearing up, "that it's not your fault. It's not. It's mine. My fault. You were amazing in that fight. You really pulled through. I…I just…"

I began to cry, harder and louder than before.

"I just want you to know I love you and that there's nothing wrong with you, buddy! I'm just a bad trainer! You…you're fine!" I sobbed. I put my face in my hands, my tears running through them and onto the deck. Suddenly, I felt Hitmonlee hug me.

"Hit hyuuut! Monlee!" He said reassuringly as he gripped me with his arms. I hugged him back, and I felt a warmth inside that I hadn't felt since…well…Raichu. I cried a bit more before stopping.

* * *

I don't know how much time passed exactly. Hitmonlee and I settled everything and I fed him some Poke-block before returning him to his Pokeball. I would judge that it was at least an hour, maybe longer, but in any event I was finally found by Ethan and May.

"Thank Arceus! We've been looking all over for you!" May shouted.

"Yeah! We were worried!" Ethan also shouted.

May elbowed him. "Ow! Wha—oh."

"And you owe me some words, yeeeeeeeeeesss?" Ethan said, smiling. I sighed.

"You're right. Ethan, May, sit down. This story is long and sad. I…I might cry when I'm telling it…so…"

"We'll be patient." May assured me, "You earned that." Ethan nodded in agreement.

"Okay…here…here it goes..."

And I told them everything. Everything about the rocket grunt; what he looked like, what he did, how he did it. Everything about Raichu; how much I loved him, and wished I died that day instead. Everything about…me; what happened to me, and who I could've let help…but didn't.

"I was dating a girl at the time…her name is Leaf. I thought we had something really special…but I don't think she did. She left me during all this. I didn't have any time for her anymore…."

"That's just cold." Ethan chimed in.

"And wrong. You didn't _have_ time! How dare she just leave you like that! Selfish bitch…." May snarled.

"Well, it's not…quite like that. I mean, I did kind of push her away. I locked myself away from the whole world. I agree she should have been more forgiving, but I wasn't a saint here. I was burdening her with my problems. It was always—"

"And?" May looked at me, a bit of anger in her eyes.

"And it was my fault. She didn't deserve that." I finished.

"What a little bitch!" May yelled.

"I don't understand." I stated.

"A relationship is about sticking with people when they're hurting! It's about loving or caring for someone no matter what! When she decided to get into a relationship with you, she basically made an agreement to be burdened by your problems, and you made an agreement to be burdened by hers. But when times got tough, this Leaf person just left you. She left you to waste! She's a bitch, and you're too good for her!" May ranted.

I paused. I really didn't know what to say.

"Is that really how it is? I would never want anyone to hurt because of—"

"May's right, dude. Why do you think you have friends at all? It's so you don't have to face problems alone. I mean, did you not once ask for a friend's help? Not even once?" Ethan asked.

"No. After what happened with Leaf…I decided it would only hurt Blue and Yellow."

"Holy mother of Arceus! I can't believe it! You poor thing!" May shouted.

"Red…" Ethan said, eyes beginning to well up.

I stared at them for a moment. Then suddenly, they both hugged me.

"Wha..?! Guys, I don't understand…."

"Your 'not getting help from friends'? It stops here." Ethan strained, trying to hold back tears.

"Yeah! From now on, we're going to help you! And we're definitely your friends!" May cried.

Then, the three of us all just sat there on the boat. In silence at first, but then Ethan started telling one of his stories. He went on and on about the awesomeness of his conquer of the Elite Four, and we exchanged back and forth about our fight with each other. May told a tale of the sheer awe of bearing witness to the legendary Groudon and Kyorge on her adventures with Brendan.

I was glad to be spending time with my new alli—friends. My friends.

* * *

Once docked, we exited the boat. I went out first, breathing in some of the fresh air in Canalave City. I looked to both my sides and then behind me to see Ethan and May lagging behind, chatting. I motioned for them to hurry up, and they ran over to me. They were making friends faster than a Ninjask flew during Quick Attack.

" _If not for Brendan's obvious relationship with May, I'd ask when her wedding to Ethan is."_ I thought, chuckling to myself.

"Where to, oh fearless leader?" Ethan joked.

"Twinleaf Town. The champion, Dawn Berlitz, lives there, and we're going to meet her next." I answered.

We all hopped on our flying Pokémon and travelled to Twinleaf, landing in front of Dawn's house. For a home in a small town, it was a surprisingly enormous structure. I knocked on the door, getting no response.

"If you're looking for Dawn, she's not here." A calm voice said.

I turned around to see a dark haired boy with a red hat and navy jacket. "And you are?"

"Oh! My name is Lucas Diam. I'm a friend of Dawn's."

"My name is Red, this is Ethan, and this is May. We're…"

"Region champions!" A blonde boy yelled.

Ethan grinned. "Ah, how I enjoy being famous."

May rolled her eyes. "Look, we're a bit busy, right Red? Where's Dawn, mister…."

"My name's Barry. Oh, yeah, and Dawn's in Hearthome, tangling with a Legendary. Normally, I'd say it's too dangerous, but trainers like you can handle it, I'm sure." He spouted, stern but hastily.

I nodded in reply. "Everyone, let's go."

* * *

As we all flew in to the city, sure enough, Dawn was locked in combat with a Legendary Pokémon. Which Legendary, however, gave me pause. It was the ice type bird known as Articuno, and it was native to my home region of Kanto.

" _Maybe it just flew away because of Team Rocket."_ I thought.

Her Rapidash lunged at Articuno, using Flare Blitz, but Articuno weaved out of the way. It used Mind Reader, readying its next attack. Dawn gritted her teeth, and had her Rapidash use Flame Charge to try to gain the speed advantage.

Having fought Articuno before, I knew that its next move was bound to be Sheer Cold, an attack that can defeat any Pokémon in one hit. I decided to prevent that. I looked down at Charizard, who I was riding on at the moment.

"Charizard, use Fire Blast on Articuno!" I yelled. A fiery maelstrom erupted from between Charizard's jaws, enveloping Articuno completely.

"CUUUUUUU!" it screamed. It blasted away the flames using its icy powers but flew away, wounded but not defeated.

I landed right next to Dawn. Returning my Charizard to its Poke Ball, I decided to introduce myself.

"Sorry to come uninvited, but we needed to see you. My name is Red." I explained.

"Red? The region champion?" Dawn asked, a bit surprised.

"That's correct."

"…."

She paused for a long time before speaking up.

"Hello, Mr. Ketchum. You may refer to me as 'Lady'." Dawn greeted.

"Oh goodie…." Ethan mumbled sarcastically. I paused, a bit confused at the request….or was it an order?

I decided not to make a big deal out of it. "Very well…um…Lady, my region and everyone in it is in serious danger. Team Rocket has made a resurgence, now using deadly force. I need help from the strongest trainers in the world, and would be very pleased if you could be one of those." I explained.

Dawn paused. She held her hand to her chin, thinking about it, before turning back to me. "I wish I could, but I'm having some…issues…."

"Involving your billion-trillion-gazillion dollar family, I presume?" Ethan chided.

Dawn glared at him, and he met her gaze with a smirk. "Not that it's any of your business, but no. _Not_ with my…'billion-trillion-gazillion dollar family'." She snapped.

I sighed. "Ethan, stand down."

Ethan put his hands in the air and walked away with the smuggest expression imaginable.

I turned back to Dawn. "Is it anything we can help with? We're perfectly willing to—"

"I'm sorry, but there's nothing you can do." She cut in. I stared for a moment.

"….sorry. I didn't mean to cut you off. I really do appreciate your offer, and your help with Articuno, but for now…I have to go. I hope we can meet again under better circumstances." Dawn explained, sighing a bit. She sent out her Togetic, which carried her away.

* * *

I let out a long sigh of my own. Maybe we would just have to do this without her. I really wished we could find a way we could get her to reconsider….

I noticed Ethan grasping at the dirt where Dawn was standing. I tilted my head in confusion as May approached him.

"Um…what are you even doing?" May asked.

Ethan threw her an orange object. "This fell out of her bag."

"A bottle of medicine?"

"Not empty, either. Oh…."

Ethan pointed to a label on the bottle.

"…and not legally prescribed."

I walked over to them.

"Can I see?"

May handed me the bottle. It read:

 **"Genoroid Type Alpha**

 **Prescribed to:_**

 **Take one intravenous injection every twenty-four (24) hours. Take fluid from the pills using a clean syringe."**

Doctor's Sig: **_**

"…"

I flipped it around to the safety label.

" **WARNING: HIGHLY ADDICTIVE. KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN.**

 **Side Effects include: Dizziness, Temporary Visual and Auditory impairment, Vomiting, and Migrane. With overfrequent use, will cause Deterioration of Bone Marrow."**

I then pulled out my smartphone and did a quick internet search. All the results said the same basic thing: this was a drug made to combat things such as muscular dystrophy, but it's effects on even a healthy body made it all the rage among drug-using teenagers. It was, as the bottle read, highly addictive, and could deteriorate bone marrow with too frequent and improper use.

"Hmm…this is a new type of drug. It's a revolutionary game changer in the medical field…."

"….but it's also a favorite of addicts, right?" Ethan finished for me.

May did a double take. "No way!"

"Yeah way, May! Rich, spoiled asshats like that can't think of anything better to do with their time." Ethan argued.

I narrowed my eyes. "That's quite a claim."

"Oh, I'm sure there are exceptions. There's gotta be some rich people who are nice. But trust me; no one in the House of Berlitz is anything less than a hedonist."

I paused. "I'm not so sure. How would she get this, exactly? The Berlitz aren't known for pharmaceuticals…."

"She probably just bought them."

"Why don't we talk to her friends about it?" May interjected.

"May, it's not worth—"

"Ethan, listen! What if these drugs are related to her 'issues' in this region?"

"Exactly. She's an addict and couldn't get them if she left." Ethan was frowning now, somewhat annoyed.

"Come on! Work with me here!" May shouted.

I thought about the situation.

"Guys!" I cut in. They both turned to me.

"I honestly don't know if I should give her the benefit of the doubt."

Ethan smirked.

"However, we're going to try anyway. We need her skills as a trainer, and besides, we shouldn't be too rash. Now, let's go back to Twinleaf." I argued.

Ethan and May looked at each other, then back at me, and we all seemed to get on the same page. For now, anyway.

* * *

Upon arrival in Twinleaf, we were immediately confronted by Barry and Lucas. Our group landed right in front of them, and we exchanged hellos.

"You did a good job, helping out Dawn. Maybe I can treat you all to something to eat!" Lucas offered.

"Maybe another time. I have a few questions for you." I stated.

Barry's head snapped to the conversation. "Really?" His eyes betrayed his skepticism.

"Just hear us out, will ya?" May said with a smile.

I took a deep breath and tossed Barry the drug bottle. He caught it with ease and his jaw dropped.

Lucas's eyes widened. He sent out his Drapion, which took a battle stance behind him.

Ethan sent out his Tyranitar, which stood behind it's trainer as well.

"TYRAAAAAAA!" Tyranitar boomed.

Ethan held his hands up. "Let's not let things spill out of control, here. We just want to know what the deal is."

"Yeah right!" Barry snarled. He sent out his Infernape, which bounded off multiple trees before skidding to a halt behind him.

Ethan turned to me.

"Urge…to punch…in face…rising…!" he whispered jokingly.

"Look, we're not here to get you arrested or in trouble. We just want to know why you have this. I just wanna help you! So don't start a fight!" I shouted. I noticed a small amount of wavering in my voice.

They paused.

"…"

"…."

"….."

"…..We stole it for Rowan." Lucas finally replied.

"Rowan? You mean, the Sinnoh Professor?" May asked.

"Yeah. He…he's sick. Really sick. The doctors currently won't give the medicine to him for some bullshit reason, so we steal it." Barry said slowly.

Ethan's eyes widened, and his face filled with guilt.

"Platinum usually pays people off to get the meds. But increasingly, the guys we have to deal with are more and more slimy." Lucas explained. He sighed, holding his head in his hands.

"I just wish there was a better way…

* * *

May, Ethan and I took a sidebar to decide what to do.

"I think we should help them! No one deserves to be in that crappy of circumstances!" May asserted.

"I agree. 'Not giving meds' has bullshit written all over it. I want to see what's up with the doctors." Ethan said, smiling.

May turned to him. "So, Dawn's definitely a hedonist scumbag, huh?"

Ethan rolled his eyes. "Oh, shut up. So I was wrong."

It didn't take long for me to agree with them as well. I didn't trust many others to handle these circumstances.

As we returned to them, we saw that Dawn had joined them and been brought up to speed.

"We're going to help you, on one condition." I started.

"Name it." Dawn said.

"I really, desperately need your help in Kanto, Lady. You'll help me, when this is over, right?"

"…that's all?" Dawn looked at me with a good deal of surprise.

"Of course. I didn't come here for anything other than your help. And it's only fitting that I help you to get it." I assured, a small smile coming to my face.

Dawn's face lit up with almost childlike glee until she recomposed herself.

" _Ahem!_ Yes, I'll help you. It's the least I can do." Dawn agreed.

Ethan smirked. "So…where's this hospital?"

* * *

 _ **To be continued…  
…**_

 _ **So, did you guys like last Chapter's perspective switch? I will do that from time to time. Not super often, but it will be a recurring feature, and I'll usually do different characters each time.**_

 _ **Also, I'm sure you all noticed the lines.**_ _ **This will help me break up the text more effectively from now on. It helps me space for emphasis and ease of reading. I hope you like it!**_

 _ **Oh, and I know I'm kind of making Leaf/Japanese Blue/American Green look like a bad person. She definitely has her own side to the story here, and you will get to see it once Red returns to Kanto.**_

 _ **ONTO THE REVIEWS!**_

 _ **Commander M**_ _ **: Look, what I mean is he's not a major character in this. I have my story set around a cast of seven and Silver isn't one of them. That's just the way I have decided to write it. However, he will show up later down the line.**_

 _ **To answer your question, yes, he is currently working with Lance.**_

 _ **Thanks for reading, and for now, I take my leave.**_


	5. Scars

" _ **Scars" (Red's perspective)**_

Red's team: Charizard/Vileplume/Lapras/Snorlax/Clefable/Hitmonlee

Dawn's team: Empoleon/Rapidash/Lopunny/Mamoswine/Togekiss/Lucario

* * *

As all of us approached the hospital in question, I made an effort to keep myself towards the front of the group. Any dangers or threats would be seen and forced upon me before anyone else, and I'm not sure if I'd be comfortable with it any other way. Besides, I'm the best equipped to handle danger. They don't have the training I have.

"… _or the gun I have."_

I began to wonder what May and Ethan would think of that. I mean, I hadn't told them about it, and it is a very lethal weapon. Would they agree that it's a necessary evil for the sake of self-defense? Or would they disagree and ask me to get rid of it?

I decided to worry about it later and started to make a beeline for the check-in counter. However, I felt someone grab my arm.

"Hey, slow down for just a sec." Lucas ordered. I turned to him.

"Is there something you need?" I asked.

"The crap is about to hit the fan, so I won't get another chance before this goes down."

"Chance to what?"

Lucas pulled a bag of chips out of his backpack.

"Eat, of course! I can't go into life threatening situations on an empty stomach, now can I?" He gave a long, earnest smile before beginning to eat.

"Are…are you kidding me?!" I shouted.

"Nope. Diamond there is a serious glutton. It can be annoying, but it grows on you." Barry commented.

"Kinda makes _me_ hungry…." Ethan chimed in.

I looked at the clock on the wall.

"Well, it IS close to dinnertime…" I began.

May gave me a skeptical look. "What, are we just going to let the Professor wait? C'mon, we'll get dinner after."

I nodded, and we all sat in the hospital waiting area to prepare ourselves…and pass the time until Lucas finished eating.

"You called him 'Diamond'." I said to Barry.

"It's just a nickname I came up with for him. I also came up with one for Dawn: Platinum. See, these are some of the toughest items around, and my friends are tough as nails!" Barry exclaimed.

"For their sake, I hope that's true." I replied.

* * *

My eyes wandered off around the complex as I took a moment to relax. I slumped backwards into my seat and took a deep breath.

"…"

"…"

" _...well, this is boring."_ I thought.

I began tapping my foot against the floor and my fingers against the armrest. I checked my email on my phone, but the most recent messages were from a month ago and…unpleasant, so I put the phone away. I glanced at the nearby magazines, and grabbed the first one off the stack. It read:

 **Celebrity Insight! Does Lissia Have a Boyfriend at Last?**

Letting out a sigh of condemnation, I casually lobbed the magazine into the garbage. I turned my head around, trying to get a good look at Lucas.

"Lucas! What is taking so lo—"

I stopped dead in my tracks as my eyes locked on to a figure behind Lucas. He was working the check-in counter, wearing hospital scrubs rather than the uniform I remembered, but between his spiked red hair and scarred lip, his identity was clear.

He was the rocket who killed my Raichu.

* * *

I froze. My hands started to shake. My breathing turned heavy and automatic. My eyes twitched. I could hear myself mumbling but I didn't know which words. I tried to stop myself from speaking but simply couldn't.

I felt my heart pounding like a drum and my head like a hammer. I could feel my whole head twitching from it. My hands reached out and grabbed my skull, holding it in place.

" _Why is he here?"_

" _Is he following me?"_

" _He's going to kill my friends!"_

" _Raichu….RAICHU!"_

" _OH GOD, PLEASE, NOT AGAIN!"_

" _NOT AGAIN!"_

"….not….again…."

"Red!" A voice called.

"...please…not…again…."

"REEEEEEEED!"

I snapped into alertness, my first thought being to spring into combat. I tackled the person before me to the ground and put my hand to his neck.

I looked at Ethan, who was staring me dead in the eye.

* * *

I scrambled away from him. I couldn't believe I had just done that….

"Ethan…I'm…s-s-sorry…I—"

"Forget about me, buddy. I'm more worried about you." Ethan interjected. His face held a weak smile.

I noticed my surroundings now. I was outside the Pokémon Center, and everyone was surrounding me.

"Uh…."

"Red…talk to me. What's wrong?" May asked.

"It's…"

I looked at everyone. They stared at me expectantly.

"…the Team Rocket member who killed…killed Raichu is…working the check-in counter." I stammered, tensing up.

"Holy shit…" Ethan said, taken aback. He bit his tongue and put a hand to his head.

Barry did a double take. He, Lucas and Dawn hadn't known about my…trauma until now.

"Team Rocket did WHAT?" Barry yelled.

"I…I'm so sorry…." Lucas managed.

"And he's HERE?!" Dawn cut in, panic clear across her face.

"Okay, okay, everyone calm down." May announced. She turned to me.

"We have to go in there. A man's life is on the line. But if you'd rather sit this one out, I wouldn't bla—"

"NO!" I screamed. Everyone's head's turned in my direction.

"I…I mean…"

I took a moment to clear my throat.

"If…if something happened to you…fighting MY demons, I wouldn't be able to live with myself…."

May smiled.

"I wouldn't be here if I couldn't take a little danger, you know." She held out her hand to me.

"Now come on. We'll fight your demons together." She proclaimed.

I took it, and stood up.

Everyone nodded in my direction.

"G-guys…." I stuttered, tearing up.

"…..Thank you."

* * *

We walked back in, shoulder to shoulder. We approached, with confidence, the check-in counter. As we got closer, I felt Ethan put his hand on my shoulder. I took a deep breath….

The grunt had a nametag, which read "Ignus". His face was buried in a newspaper.

"Excuse me, sir," Ethan began, "I'd like to file a complaint."

"Hmm? With what?" Ignus answered, absentmindedly.

"This hospital is full of Rocket brand killers." Barry finished.

Immediately, his face went out of the newspaper, and he jumped backward when he saw me.

"Y-you! RED!" He screamed.

He pulled out a pistol from inside his hospital scrubs. My eyes locked onto it and my body acted, grabbing his gun hand.

*BLAM!* *BLAM*

The shots went harmlessly into the floor. May and Barry took action, punching Ignus directly in the face.

"UGH!" he grunted, slamming into the wall behind him. His hand grabbed a letter opener that was sitting on his desk. He charged at Barry, stabbing him in the shoulder.

"ERRRGH!" Barry shrieked. He fell backward and onto the ground, rolling away and disengaging from the fight. Ethan, meanwhile, scooped up the dropped gun Ignus was wielding. May held his knife away, but Ignus was beginning to overpower her. I grabbed him, throwing him against a wall.

Dawn, meanwhile, called the police. She then sent out her Togekiss, and Lucas sent out his Drapion.

Ignus stood back up, and jabbed at me with the knife. I weaved and dodged, eventually back-flipping away. I then heard Ethan yell:

"DUCK!"

I ducked down.

*BLAM!*

I looked back up to see a pair of bloody stumps where Ignus's right middle and ring fingers used to be. The knife had fallen out of his hands and onto the floor. Ignus grabbed his arm in pain, and I noticed that that's where the bullet had ended up.

"Drapion, hold em!" Lucas shouted. Drapion grabbed Ignus, who struggled to get away.

"Togekiss, use Sweet Kiss!" Dawn shouted. Togekiss pecked Ignus on the cheek, causing him to go into a confused daze before falling unconscious.

* * *

"Barry!" Lucas yelped. He ran over to Barry's side.

"I'll live…I'll live…." Barry grunted. He gripped his shoulder tightly.

May snapped her fingers. "Hey, this is a hospital, right? Why don't you two go find some supplies to treat Barry's shoulder?"

"Will do. Be safe, guys!" Lucas exclaimed. He returned his Drapion to its Poke Ball and left with Barry.

I turned to Ethan.

"That was…."

"I…I know. But I didn't want anyone to get hurt either, Red." He looked at me with sad eyes and a weak smile.

I nodded, and we walk over to May and Dawn.

"You two okay?" Ethan asked.

"Fine. Thank you." Dawn replied.

"Let's get moving. There's gotta be more Rockets here." I stated.

* * *

We all began travelling deeper into the hospital. Everyone who wasn't a Rocket or hospital staff had fled in fear after the gunshots, so we faced little resistance as we travelled through the darkened halls of the building.

Noticing said darkened halls, I called out Charizard to my side.

"Light the way, Charizard." I said.

Charizard nodded, and kept his tail in the air. We proceeded with caution as we looked for any more Rockets. Our job at this point was to round them up for the police, who still had a few minutes before they would arrive.

We entered the basement and heard several voices yelling about something. This prompted us to move slower and more carefully. Eventually, we could hear them just around the corner.

We stopped to listen in on their conversation.

"Get dat damn thing loaded! We're under attack and don't got more time!" the Admin bellowed.

"What's the plan of attack?" May whispered.

Dawn put a finger to her lip and looked around the corner. "Well, there's not that many of them, all things considered, and they don't appear to be armed…"

"I have a plan." Ethan interjected.

"What?"

He grinned. "Attack."

* * *

Ethan threw an empty Ultra Ball at the Admin's head.

"OW! What da fuck?!" The Admin yelled. He looked around, trying to figure out where it came from.

"Ethan! You're insane!" I whispered.

He threw a Heavy Ball at the Admin next.

*THUD!*

The admin fell to the floor, and all the grunts started heading our way.

I rolled my eyes, sent out Hitmonlee and Vileplume, and brought Charizard to a combat position. Three opposing grunts sent out Weezing, Doublade, and Watchog.

"Hitmonlee, attack the Watchog with Brick Break!" I ordered. It was a one hit KO.

"Vileplume, use—"

The grunt with the fainted Pokemon tried to attack me with a punch. I dodged and socked him in the gut.

"Weezing, use explosion! Wipe that brat off the face of the Earth!" a grunt yelled.

"Charizard, mega evolve and Flare Blitz!" I shouted. I felt the power of the Mega Bracelet and Charizard's own will coursing through my veins as he mega evolved into Mega Charizard X. He outsped the Weezing and took it down in one hit.

"Damnit!" the grunt yelled. He also tried to attack me, but Charizard jumped onto him.

"Guuuuuuh!" he grunted.

I turned to the final grunt, who just returned his Doublade and ran.

* * *

I walked to a large truck. They were loading stuff into it before we interrupted them. Taking a peek, I saw several large containers with a label:

 **Experimental Regrowth Formula: Model H.6**

 **CURRENTLY ONLY APPROVED FOR SCIENTIFIC STUDY, AND NOT TO BE GIVEN TO PATIENTS UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES.**

 **Believed to cause the artificial regrowth of destroyed tissues. Tests currently show a 99/100 percent success rate.**

 **POTENTIALLY TOXIC! DO NOT OPEN!**

I had no idea what this was. Even internet searches were uneventful; it was like this chemical didn't exist. Regardless, it was probably better for Team Rocket not to have it, so I called Snorlax to my side.

"Snorlax, use strength! Move these containers out of the truck!" I ordered.

"Snooooor!" Snorlax replied. He moved them with ease, and I stepped outside the truck. I surveyed the area, and my friends had taken down the rest of the Rockets.

"What's that?" Ethan shouted. He ran over to investigate the containers.

"No idea." I answered.

"Who cares? We just fought an army, baby! YAHOOOOOOO!" May cheered.

* * *

The police arrived and arrested every member of Team Rocket at the scene. They also helped Dawn get plenty of Rowan's medicine. They revered us as "a team of young heroes" and were happy that we were able to bust this operation.

However, as I looked at the criminals being loaded into the police vans, something began to bug me. I approached Officer Jenny.

"Hey, did you arrest a Rocket with spiky red hair and a scar? Oh, and missing two fingers? He was in the hospital lobby…." I asked.

"I'm sorry. Lady Berlitz did mention him when she called us, but we weren't able to find him." Jenny replied.

I paused and clenched my fists. Naturally, the one criminal who I know for a fact is worse than many of the others gets away. Naturally, it was the one who killed my friend….

I walked back to my group of friends. We all flew to Twinleaf Town on our Pokémon, and the "Sinnoh Friend Trio" (as May called them; Ethan called them the "One True Threesome", if only as a joke) gave Professor Rowan the medicine he needed.

"I'd really like to thank all of you for your help! Seriously, I'm not even sure we could have done it without you. How about I treat you to a buffet, on me?" Lucas offered.

"Yeah, that sounds great! I'm starving!" May beamed.

"Oh yeah!" Ethan chimed in.

The three of them left to go get a bite to eat. Barry was resting at home after being injured. I began to follow them.

"Red?"

I turned around to see Dawn standing behind me.

"Lady. What do you need?" I asked.

"I just wanted to thank you. And say…I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"Um, I meant in the empathetic sense. As in, I'm sorry for your loss." She explained, an awkward look spreading across her face.

"Oh."

"…"

"Thanks," I replied, "I really appreciate it." I smiled.

"Oh! One more thing."

"Hmm?"

"You can call me Dawn…if you want."

I paused.

"Thanks. I think it's a nice name, and suits you better than 'lady'. 'Lady' could be just anyone, but only you can be you." I replied.

Dawn smiled with a faint blush. "Let's catch up to Lucas, or the buffet will run out of food before we get there."

"Are you serious?"

We chatted and ate. Everyone had a good time, and I forgot, for a while, about how much I hated myself for letting Ignus escape.

Later, Dawn joined us on a plane to Unova after saying a tearful goodbye to her two best friends. May, Ethan, Dawn, and I all boarded the flight, and I looked at my reflection in the window as the plane took off, sighing.

" _Raichu…I'm sorry that I couldn't bring you justice today."_

 _ **To be conti…**_

 _ **conti…**_

 _ **contiiuuuuuuuuuu…**_

…

…

 _ **BONUS:**_

 _ **?'s (Team Rocket Leader) perspective**_

* * *

I looked upon this red haired jackass. Arceus, what an idiot! I certainly wanted to see Red suffer, but this moron's murder of Raichu had only provoked Red into coming to destroy us before I was ready. Now, I had, according to Admin Frost, a budding team of Champions preparing to knock at my door.

This asshat would fix his mistakes or die.

"Grunt Ignus!" I boomed. The grunt sprung to attention.

"Y-yes, Mr. O—"

"DON'T CALL ME THAT!"

"Sorry, Rocket Lord, sorry! Don't hurt me!" He cowered in fear.

"YOU are the one who foolishly killed Red's Raichu. Now, you've seen the fruit of your mistakes, growing and becoming stronger. The only reason you are not already dead is an opportunity for a psychological advantage!" I thundered.

"W-what do you want me to do? I'll do anything, please!" Ignus screamed.

"YOU are going to fix your mistake. Kill Red and his teammates, or I'll feed you to the abomination in our basement!" I commanded.

"OK, OK! YOU GOT IT! AHAHAHAHAHAHA…" Ignus sputtered nervously.

I just hope Ignus's fear of me will be enough. Red will suffer for what he has done to me.

 _ **To be continued (for realsies)**_

* * *

 _ **This was my most action packed chapter so far, I think. How did you like it? Please let me know with a review! Even just a few words goes a long way in helping me!**_

 _ **What? No, Dawn ALWAYS had a Togetic. Check the last chapter!**_

 _ **(Yeah, I changed it).**_

 _ **Thanks for reading, and for now, I take my leave.**_


	6. Unload

" _ **Unload" (Red's Perspective)**_

Red's team: Charizard/Vileplume/Lapras/Snorlax/Clefable/Hitmonlee

* * *

On the long trip to Unova, I took the time to self-reflect. I needed a moment to process everything that had happened so far. Every accomplishment, every failure. This plane ride was the perfect chance…

…Or it would have been, if not for the stupid fucking baby! I didn't even believe that stereotype of a baby crying on an airplane and a mom doing absolutely nothing (actually, she became utterly vitriolic towards anyone who even slightly complained) until this flight.

Fortunately, the baby did eventually fall asleep. Point of fact, it made me take notice of the time, not just of the present hour, but of the quick fashion in which I achieved my mission. I believe it has been only two days total.

" _That's incredible, right? I've made new friends, maybe for life. I've recruited three allies to fight an army, came face to face with my demon and then lost him…."_

"Red?" May asked.

I realized that I had spaced out, likely since we got off the plane. I turned to her.

"Sorry. What is it?"

"Any thoughts on a hotel?" May looked at her phone, swiping through a list of hotel results.

"Hmmm…."

I thought about it for a moment. I would want to be close the Champion's hometown, so we could easily resume our trip in the morning….

"May, we need to go to Accumula! It has a hotel, and it's close to the champ's hometown!" Ethan remarked.

"How would you know?" May retorted.

"Um, hello? Who DOESN'T know about the great Hilda White?" Ethan exclaimed.

"That's all well and good, Ethan, but Hilda's been missing for some time, probably looking for that N guy. We're going to get Nate Ebon, the new champion in Hilda's absence, so we should instead shoot for a hotel in Aspertia City." I announced.

"Awww…" Ethan groaned.

I raised an eyebrow. "What? Are you a fanboy or something?"

"Why wouldn't I be? She's a badass through and through, born with nothing but now runs a company AND is champion of the Pokemon League! I've always wanted to meet her." Ethan rattled off.

"Maybe another time. For now, I'm tired. Let's go!" May stated.

* * *

Landing in front of the Aspertia Hotel, we all entered and weaved our way around the many people inside. They were all gathered in the lobby for some kind of happy hour.

I ignored all this for now and proceeded to the check-in counter.

"Hello monsieur, how might I serve you?" The managed asked.

"Two rooms, double beds." I answered.

The manager checked his computer.

"Er, I am sorry, monsieur, but we only have one room left. We are totally booked."

I paused.

"…"

"…"

"… _well, tonight is going to be awkward."_

* * *

"What? I am NOT sharing a bed!" Ethan protested.

"Okay, look. I guess someone could sleep in that chair, and another on the couch, but two more have to sleep in that bed!" I argued.

"Then I—"

"I hereby claim this couch in the name of the House of Berlitz! All who attempt to impede on this property will face my reprisal!" Dawn roared.

"…"

We all stared at her, shocked.

"Oh…um…er…"

"…"

"…Sorry, that happens sometimes. But my meaning is that I refuse to share a bed." Dawn mumbled, looking away from embarrassment.

"Okay, so Ethan, you and I will share the be—"

"Ethan!"

I looked at him to see him already in pajamas and reclining in the chair.

"Sorry, what?" he said, putting in some earbuds, "I can't hear you over this lullaby music."

"That's heavy metal!" I shouted. Letting out a sigh of exasperation, I turned to May.

"How is this gonna work?" I asked.

"How's _what_ gonna work? We just share the bed, that's all." May proclaimed.

"What? But…."

"Red, what are you fretting about? I know you'd never do anything to take advantage of me. I trust you for a reason." She assured with a smile.

"…Okay….." I sighed.

* * *

As we all tried to sleep that night, I couldn't help but have a hard time sleeping myself. Not because of May, of course, but because of Ignus.

"Don't worry, Raichu. I'll avenge you one day." I whispered to myself.

"Don't worry…"

I shut my eyes, only to reawaken in a world I didn't recognize…at first. But as my eyes adjusted to the light, I could tell where I was, clear as day.

" _Mount Moon…!"_

Raichu crawled up my shoulder. He eventually decided to evolve, and hadn't regretted it.

"Rai-Rai!" he squeaked.

I reached out to pet him, my mouth still agape at what I was seeing.

"Hey, Red!" A voice called. I turned my head to see my old friend Gary.

"Blue! H-hey, it's been too long!"

"You're right, Red. It has been too long." He bit, suddenly sinister.

"What…?"

"All you do is get people and Pokemon killed, Red." Blue's voice was a demonic growl now, no longer fitting his body.

"Where were you when my sister was crippled, Red?"

"You blame Leaf for leaving you, but what about her abusive foster dad and adopted brother? She had more responsibilities than just you!"

"Did you even care about what your mom might think about you fighting a war?"

"AND WHAT ABOUT MY RATICATE, YOU CRUEL SON OF A BITCH?!" The demonic voice was overpowering, tearing through the rocks and the world around me.

I turned to face Raichu.

The skin had been ripped from his flesh.

* * *

"HAAAAUUUUUUGH!" I spattered as I awoke screaming.

"Haaaaugh….huuuufff…."

I took a look at my surroundings, and realized that it was just a dream.

"Okay…okay." I breathed.

I rubbed my eyes, and put my head in my hands.

"How could I not see it…I'm a terrible person…" I mumbled.

"I don't think you are!" May cried. I turned to face her.

"O-oh, I'm sorry if I woke you…."

"Sorry? Red, you're…you're sweating! It's fifty degrees Fahrenheit, and you're sweating like it's one-hundred! And you're screaming from a nightmare! And you think YOU need to be sorry?"

She hugged me close.

"Listen…I don't know…I don't know what you're going through. But you are not a bad person! You're a great person! You're an amazing, beautiful human being! Please, _please_ don't blame yourself for everything! It's not your fault! It's not and never will be!" Her face was wet with tears, and she cried into me.

I began to cry, too. "I'm s-s-sorry if I made you worry, May…"

"No!" She interjected.

"…?"

"You don't have to be sorry that you're worrying us! Caring for you is not an obligation, Red! Me and Ethan and Dawn care about you because we _want_ to, not because we _have_ to!"

"I…I…."

For the rest of that evening, we cried. We cried together, and held each other close to provide comfort during the sad, cold night.

* * *

I woke up the next morning, still locked in May's hug. I tried to wedge her arms apart, to no avail.

" _Heh. She's got one hell of a grip."_ I thought to myself. I tried to squirm my way out and determined very quickly that I was stuck. I decided to wake May up, then.

"May." I said, poking at her nose. I continued to poke until she grabbed my hand.

"What the hell are you doing?" she groaned.

"I didn't want to wake you with a loud noise."

"Ah. Good call."

She got up and left to get changed in the bathroom. When she came out, she tied her shoes.

"I think Ethan and Dawn have already left, so we should probably go after them."

I nodded.

"Hey…May?"

"Hmmm?

"….Thank you." I smiled warmly to her.

She blushed lightly. "Anytime."

We met up with Dawn and Ethan in the lobby.

"Hey guys."

"Hiya, O fearless leader! We were just grabbing a bite to eat." Ethan joked.

"Thank Arceus you guys are here!" Dawn called.

"What's wrong?"

"Red! I order you to force Ethan to either write better material or stop making puns!" Dawn commanded.

I sighed. "Ethan, on the subject of your puns…"

"Git gud."

Ethan's eyes narrowed. "So, Red, May, when's the wedding?"

"What?!" May and I both yelled.

"I'm willing to be the best man if you don't already have someone signed up." Ethan added, smirking.

"Ethan..." I grumbled.

"I have to give this one to him; You two looked pretty adorable toge—I mean, you two looked like there was something going on between you." Dawn mused.

"Well there's nothing there, OK?! Now come on, we got a region champ to meet, right?" May snapped.

"I suppooooooooose…but you know I'm gonna hold this over your heads forever, right?" Ethan teased.

* * *

Nate's house wasn't far from the hotel, so we walked to it on foot. The house in question looked rather nondescript, almost to the point of being foreboding. Dawn knocked on the door.

*Knock Knock*

An older woman answered the door.

"Hello. What brings you here?" The woman stated.

"We need to speak to Nate. Is he home?" Dawn asked.

The woman's eyes narrowed. "No. He is not."

"Do you know where he might be?" Ethan said, following up.

"Why does it matter to you?" The woman's voice became sharper and more automatic with every sentence.

As they had their verbal back-and-forth, I found myself glancing inside the house to find that, as unmemorable as the outside was, the inside was downright sparse. It had all the obvious things a home in this type of area would have, like a couch and TV, but something was missing.

"…"

"… _.pictures!"_

There were no pictures anywhere in the home. Not a single photograph lined its walls. Nothing else implying sentiment was visible either. No memories, or achievements, or anything else could be seen. It was less like a home and more like just a series of rooms.

I refocused my attention to Ethan's conversation.

"Alright, FINE. We're region champions, okay? I'm Ethan Gold of Johto, this is Dawn Berlitz of Sinnoh, and so on. We're here on official business. You seem like you know where he is, so what have you got to hide?"

The woman just stared with a glare of death to Ethan, while he met her gaze with equal ferocity.

"…"

"…"

"….Very well. He left me a note. Let me retrieve it for you." The woman finally declared. She walked back inside.

We all looked at Ethan.

"Don't you think you were a bit rude?" Dawn chided.

"Maybe, but I would have felt worse if I felt like she was just being hesistant to protect her son. I mean, did you LISTEN to her? It's like she can't _feel_." Ethan rebutted.

"That's a horribly mean spirited thing to say!..."

"…..and perhaps somewhat accurate." Dawn admitted.

All of this made me uneasy. Was I just being paranoid or was there something else going on here? When the woman returned, I felt even more put off, though I didn't know why.

"He's on Route 4." The woman said.

We left on our flying Pokemon and travelled to the desert route. We walked up and down the main path for a while, but to no avail, so we continued into the rest of the route and wandered around until we ended up hopelessly lost.

"Welp, I have no idea where we are. How about you guys?" Ethan remarked.

"Yeah, I always have this problem in deserts." May agreed.

"My question is why there's one in every region when deserts should be, ecologically, less common." Dawn chimed in.

"Really? THAT'S your question?" Ethan replied.

"What?" Dawn pouted.

"Eh, nothing. Honestly, you're kinda right. I wonder the same thing about snowy areas." Ethan admitted, smiling.

"My theory, personally, is that the powers of the Pokémon living in certain areas terraform the area at an accelerated rate to benefit the greatest number of species in that area." Dawn mused.

"I've never really given it much thought. SOUNDS possible….." May chimed in.

I continued to look around, trying to remember where we are and where we were. I sighed. It was rather hopeless. I was about to turn back around and suggest we fly back to a city, when I caught something out of the corner of my eye.

I turned, and saw it more clearly. It looked like a person. He looked like he was running, hurriedly and relentlessly. Was he running away from something?

Or….

No.

He was running _to_ something. And that something was _us._

I remembered, in that moment, what I felt was off about Nate's mother when she came back. She mentioned that Nate left her a note, one she presumably left to find.

She held no note in her hand when she returned.

As I looked at the approaching man, I got a glimpse at his hand.

It held a gun.

* * *

"Everyone, GET DOWN!" I boomed. Everyone dropped to the floor as a rain of bullets passed over our heads. Dawn, May, and Ethan of them were clearly panicked.

"What the hell's going on?" Ethan yelled.

"I'll handle it!" I yelled back. I really didn't want to have to do this, but it was time for the other foot to drop.

I pulled out my own rifle, and opened fire.

"Um, Red? WHERE DID YOU GET THAT?" May shouted.

"We'll discuss it later!" I roared back. I charged toward the enemy. We both had our guns raised, and soon enough we were close enough to see the other's face. The gunman was none other than Nate Ebon himself.

"Nate Ebon!" I screeched. He had no reply.

I continued. "Why? Why are you trying to kill us?!"

"…"

He ran at me with speed I hadn't seen since Koga, and knocked the gun out of my hands. I retaliated immediately by doing the same to him, but I already could tell he wouldn't need it.

He kicked me squarely in the chest. I had to catch myself from tumbling into the dirt, but managed to intercept his left hook.

Catching it, I punched him in the face with my free hand, but he unflinchingly rammed his head into my chest.

I felt the wind get knocked out of me as I fell directly into the dirt. I expected him to pin me to the ground with his body, but instead, as I turned on my side to roll away, he stomped me with as much force as he could manage in one foot.

"AAAAAGH!" I screamed. I could hear bones snap under the weight of the attack. He raised his foot for another.

" _That'll kill me…."_ I thought. I grabbed and stopped the foot, and swung Nate into the ground. He kicked his foot away, out of my hand, but that gave me the opening I needed. I pounced on top of him, pinning him down.

He rolled his right arm free, and grabbed a concealed knife from his belt. I reacted quickly, grabbing his wrist and forcing his arm away.

" _I think I have the muscle advantage…"_

With his left arm, he punched me in the gut as hard and as many times as he could manage. I did my best to endure the blows as I put my full force on his wrist.

*SNAP!*

I let go of his now broken hand, forcing both of my arms on his left one. He struggled to pull away, but I had him stuck. He began trying to punch me with his broken hand. I decided to end the fight, moving my arms off of his to punch him in the face. Again and again and again until he finally fell unconscious.

I rolled off of him, and stood up, gripping my side. That stomp in particular…it broke two ribs. I could feel it. I staggered, trying to stay standing. May, Ethan, and Dawn rushed over.

"Red! Are you OK?" May shouted.

"I'll be…fine…ugh…" I managed.

"No, you're not! How bad is it?" Dawn cried.

I paused. "Lots of cuts. Badly bruised stomach. Two…broken ribs." I heaved.

"Oh god…." Ethan murmured.

"Good news, though: I won." I announced, motioning to Nate's unconscious body.

They all looked at him.

"May, carry Nate. Ethan and I will help Red." Dawn ordered.

"THAT'S Nate Ebon?!" May yelled.

"Yeah…but why?" Ethan stated, a tone of anger in his voice.

"We're going to find out." Dawn declared.

* * *

 _ **To be continued**_

* * *

 _ **Hey everyone! I'm always thankful for the new followers! Now, you're probably thinking "Hey, I either read or have a good enough understanding of the Black 2/White 2 Adventures Manga, and Nate is nothing like this! Like, at ALL. Not even in the games!" to which I say, you are 100% correct.**_

 _ **So why is he like this? Well, it's actually not too complicated, but I unfortunately am a cruel person and shall force you to wait until Chapter 7 to find out. MUHAHAHAHA!**_

 _ **I'm going to have it coming really soon, though, so don't worry! Thanks for reading, guys, and for now, I take my leave!**_


	7. International Corrpution

" _ **International Corruption" (Dawn's Perspective)**_

Dawn's team: Empoleon/Rapidash/Lopunny/Mamoswine/Togekiss/Lucario

* * *

We left the hospital in a hurry after dropping off Red; after all, we didn't want to keep May waiting. Ethan in particular looked almost ready to flat-out run all the way there. We hopped on our flying Pokemon, and headed to an abandoned shack we found on Route 4. Currently, we were holding Nate there.

As Ethan and I entered, we exchanged looks. He seemed very angry; I'd seen him moody before, but this was different. He was absolutely enraged.

I looked ahead to see may putting the last of our many locks on Nate. There must have been twenty-two different chains restricting his motion.

"Guys, I'm not sure he's locked up enough." Ethan joked.

May smirked. "Yeah, I know, but it'll have to do."

"What's the saying? 'Better safe than sorry'?" I chimed in. They both nodded in agreement.

May's eyes locked onto Nate. "So, how is this going to work? Do I try to punch him until he tells us why he did what he did?"

"We should use a psychic type as a lie detector." Ethan suggested.

"I have no psychic types, but Lucario has telepathy, and can sense if he lies via his aura." I offered. Ethan gave me a thumbs up.

"Go, Lucario!" I yelled. I threw the ball onto the floor, releasing my partner. I stroked the fur in between his ears.

"Listen. We need you to tell us if this guy lies. It's very important. You trust me, right Lucario?"

Lucario nodded. "Luuucarrrrrr!"

"Thank you."

I turned back to May and Ethan.

"Lucario is ready. Any estimation on when our guest will wake up?"

"None. We'll just have to wait for now." Ethan informed. He looked down at the ground before walking away.

* * *

An hour later, the severity of the situation began to creep up on me. I mean, I've been in danger before, but somehow Nate felt more dangerous to me than even Cyrus ever did.

" _It might have just been the guns. Or…"_

"… _.No. Cyrus was an evil mastermind, but his end goal wasn't to kill people, at least not specifically. This guy…we don't even know his motives yet, assuming he has any. All we know is that he's trying to kill us."_

Suddenly, I noticed him stir. I walked over to him, and his eyes snapped open, almost mechanically. He stared at me for several minutes, and I saw a burning fire within his brown eyes.

"May. Ethan. Get over here." I called. They ran over immediately.

"Where am I?" Nate asked immediately.

"I'm not sure you understand…." Ethan began. May grabbed his head and made him look her in the eyes.

"WE ask the questions!" May finished.

Nate looked…unamused. "Ask whatever you want, but most of the information is classified."

"Let's start with 'why did you try to kill us, you sick bastard' and go from there." May snarked.

"You should already know the answer to that." Nate chided.

"Listen here, buddy…" Ethan began. He kneeled to Nate's level.

"We have absolutely no idea about anything. Now, normally, I like to keep a lid on things. I like to be the asshole who asks, 'You mad bro?" and laugh wounds and insults off."

Ethan suddenly punched Nate across the face as hard as he could. I could even see blood fly right out of Nate's mouth.

"But you tried to kill me and my friends! So I'm MAD, 'bro'! And _you_ are either gonna cough up some answers or some more blood!"

Nate spit some blood out of his mouth.

"The international police is currently hunting down a group of scientists and their henchmen, coordinating for something called 'Project RéBurst'. I have been assigned to ki…ah…. _eliminate_ all of their associates. Including you." He said, with odd hesitation.

"Are you fucking joking?!" May screamed.

"…I…I don't follow." Nate replied.

"We are not part of such a group. None of us are even from this region." I answered.

Nate paused. His eyes widened for a bit, but then returned to normal.

"You're lying. Give me one reason to belie—"

I showed him my Pokedex.

"I got this from Professor Rowan of the Sinnoh Region. I don't know a lot of people who have them." I rebutted.

"No…" Nate whispered.

I leaned in a bit. "Hmmm?"

"O-oh g-god! OH GOD! NOT AGAIN! OH ARCEUS PLEASE NOT AGAIN!" He began screaming. He started thrashing against the chains, panicked and hysterical.

"Um…" May started.

"Tch. Let him thrash." Ethan snarled.

* * *

I paused, mainly because I was skeptical of what was really going on. There was obviously more here. Wouldn't we have known if he was an officer for the International Police? I don't doubt that that's really the case, but it seems like Red, our "mastermind", I suppose, had absolutely no idea, and he'd be the one to know. It stands to reason it was being covered up.

" _I hate conspiracies."_ I thought to myself. A small smile appeared on my face before I looked back at Nate's torturous expression, causing it to fade as quickly as it came.

He didn't seem to be proud of his government or himself in the least. And how did someone so young become so skilled? Red normally wouldn't have won that fight; Nate just wasn't expecting him to have any skills at all. Red might have had a larger build, but Nate would outmatch him anytime else.

What I knew now is that I wanted answers.

"Lucario, try to use your aura to calm him down. I have a few more questions." I commanded. Lucario nodded, and as his eyes glowed blue with aura energy, Nate began to calm…somewhat.

"W-what else…do you want from me, huh?" He quavered.

"What did you not want to do again?" I asked. I looked him in the eyes.

"…"

"…kill innocents." Nate finally answered.

Ethan visibly rolled his eyes. "He's playing us."

I gave him a glare. "Lucario says he isn't."

I turned back to Nate. He was still panicked, but gazed at me with a confusion now.

"Why?" I asked,

"I never wanted to kill anyone," Nate said, breathing slowly, "but if I was going to be forced to, I decided I would only kill bad people…"

He suddenly started shaking again. "No no no…I've already said too much…."

A thought hit me. "Are you being forced to work for the government?" I asked.

He stared at me for what felt like an hour, before finally whispering, in the softest tone "Yes."

At this point, I looked back at Ethan and May. Despite my Lucario barking at them out of anger (he really hates it when people doubt his powers) to reaffirm that Nate was telling the truth, they both decided that everything he was saying was a ruse.

Now, I understood that they had very good reasons not to trust Nate, but I did. It was probably because they were closer with Red, and were thinking with their emotions. Red was badly hurt, and it was Nate's fau—

" _Oh! Nate probably thinks he killed Red!"_ I thought. I turned to Nate.

"Hey, listen. You know that guy you were fighting?"

He nodded slowly.

"He's got some broken bones, but he's getting treatment at the hospital. He will be fine." I looked into his eyes, hoping a light smile would help calm him.

"R-really? He's okay?" Nate cried. I nodded, and he broke into tears.

"I'm…I'm so sorry…I hurt you all…" he sobbed.

"Listen…I can't say it's okay. But I don't think it's the end of the world, either. Let's try to move forward. It seems like the smartest thing to do." I assured.

*CLANK*

I heard the door slam, and saw that Ethan and May had left.

" _Thanks for the support, guys."_ I thought sarcastically.

"Hey…can I ask you a question?" Nate said.

"Sure."

"You're Lady Berlitz, right? The Platinum Champion of Sinnoh?"

I found myself grinning that someone finally addressed me properly without having to be told.

"Yes. In fact, those were Ethan Gold, Johto Champion, May Birch, Hoenn Sub-Champion, and you fought Red Ketchum, Kanto Champion." I answered.

"So you're all the strongest trainers…"

"…"

"…"

I looked at him while he seemingly pondered something in his head.

"I think you're strong enough to help me!" He finally shouted.

"Help you?"

"Yes. Will…will you…ech, never mind..."

"Hey," I pouted, "don't leave me hanging! I've already said I would be willing to put the past behind us. I have work to do, so if you have something to say, say it!"

He took a deep breath. "Will you help me escape Interpol?!"

* * *

"Allow me to explain. I am the result of a government project known as Knight Birth, designed to create a perfect super-soldier by combining the genes of two of the agency's best spies." Nate began.

To be honest, I had a hard time believing that right away, despite Lucario insisting it was the truth. Even still, I kept listening.

"I was raised in captivity and never had a life of my own. To the outside world, I'm a…a 'Mister Perfect', but that was always a façade. I only have two secret friends who know the whole truth."

He stopped for a moment before continuing.

"I was eventually declared the best spy on the agency at the age of twelve. Those who questioned how someone as young as me could have been the best on the force were discretely executed."

"R-really? Just for asking? They wouldn't even try to lie?" I stammered.

"Lies can be seen through, and if that happens, it leads to investigations, which leads to secrets being revealed. It's…it's as sick as it sounds…."

He cleared his throat.

"But because of Hugh and Rosa, I know what the outside world is like! I know how most other people live!

I…I want that life!" He was screaming now, his true emotions finally on the table.

I looked at him for a while. Just…looked at him. He seemed so very different from the single-minded killer he appeared to be when we first met. He seemed like a normal human being.

Maybe I was being overly optimistic or gullible. Maybe he really didn't deserve my help, or maybe he somehow found a way to lie after all and I was getting talked into a trap.

But I wanted to help.

I began unbinding his chains, one by one by one. He stayed silent, looking at me—just looking at me—with this wondrous look, like this was all he could have ever wanted. I continued, and the last few chains fell off.

*CLANG*

He stood up slowly and approached me, almost skittishly. I, however, stepped back a bit. Eventually, despite my fears, I stood in place, and he got in close. Suddenly, his arms moved quickly, as if to attack, and I found myself flinching and mentally kicking myself for how much of a fucking fool I was and…!

…

He hugged me.

"Thank you…I know you haven't even started yet…but…but…thank you." He sobbed.

I breathed a sigh of relief, and smiled as I hugged him back.

* * *

We made our way to the Pokémon center, in inconspicuous clothing. After all, we wanted to meet with Red (preferably before the others did) and Nate needed quick healing. Doctors say that using Pokémon-Center radiation on humans is unsafe, but that is only true in excess, and Nate really needed to be put back in shape.

As we approached the front desk, I saw Nurse Joy at the counter.

"Hello, Nurse," I began, "I need to ask a favor."

Her face suddenly turned red. "Oh, if you must have your way with me…I guess we could go into the back room…" Nurse Joy stuttered. I facepalmed.

"Why did she think you meant sex?" Nate asked me.

"I said 'Hello, Nurse'." I groaned.

"How else would you greet a nurse? That makes no sense!" Nate argued.

"As much as I agree…have you just never watched a movie, or read a book?" I asked, jokingly.

"Only propaganda films." He answered. I frowned and bit my lip out of guilt.

I turned back to the nurse. "I just mean, can you use the healing-radiation on my friend? We're in a real hurry, and his hand is broken."

"Oh…" Nurse Joy grumbled, rather disappointed. She angrily pouted towards us.

"Well, what do _I_ get out of it?"

"I'm filthy rich, so how about money?" I suggested, annoyed.

"…"

Twenty thousand Poke Dollars later, we came to terms.

*doo-do-doo-do-doo-do-DA!*

After the bell chimed, Nate was fully healed. He walked to me, a bit dizzy from the radiation therapy, and he sat down in a nearby chair. I handed him a bottle of water.

"Hey, uh, Lady Berlitz?" Nate asked.

"Yes?"

"I need to call Rosa and Hugh. Once we do this…they'll be in danger. They don't need to stay with us, but we will need to get them to a safe place."

I paused. "I don't know. Red has this…mission."

"Hmm?"

"You don't have to help. Er…but yeah, Red is gathering region champions like you and me to fight an evil threat of lethally dangerous thugs back in his home region." I explained.

Nate looked me right in the eyes. "Of course I'll help."

"But…it would mean more fighting."

"I would love to help, Dawn. I'm not a fan of going into battle, but at least it would be a battle against bad people…and one I'm fighting by my own…c-choice." He managed, choking up a bit at the end.

"Nate?"

"My own choice! My very own choice!" He cried. Tears fell down his cheeks as he looked at me with this childlike happiness on his face.

I felt so bad for him…

* * *

He called Rosa and Hugh, and told them to meet him at the Nimbasa City Pokemon Center. Afterward, we headed upstairs, where we found Red's room. We went inside.

"Red?" I called.

"Yeah, hey Dawn—" He started. He saw Nate.

"Behind you!" Red yelped. He grabbed his rifle and pointed it at Nate, but I put myself between them.

"Red! Wait! It's not what you think!" I screamed.

Red narrowed his eyes. He was clearly skeptical, but willing to listen, and he put his gun down.

"Then what is it?"

I told him everything about the government conspiracy, and how Nate has agreed to help.

"…I want to talk to Lucario." Red stated. I nodded.

"Lucario, spotlight!" I called. Lucario sprung out of his Poke Ball.

Red kneeled down before him.

"Hey there, fella. I'm Red. I'm a friend of Dawn's."

"Luuuua." He replied, nodding.

"Tell me, do you think that that man is dangerous?" he asked, pointing to Nate.

Lucario looked back at Nate, and nodded.

I bit my lip, but fortunately, Red continued.

"Do you think he is a good man?" Red asked.

Lucario gazed at Nate. His eyes glowed with supernatural aura.

He turned to Red and nodded again.

"And he was telling Dawn the truth?"

Lucario nodded a third time.

"Thank you. That's all I needed." Red said, smiling. I returned Lucario to its Poke Ball.

"Red, thank you for understanding. Ethan and May didn't believe one word of it." I beamed.

"Well, you're a good trainer, and Lucario is a psychic, objective viewpoint. I believed you; I just had to be sure."

I nodded. "Did they heal you?"

"Yeah. It still stings, but it'll do."

Suddenly, we heard a loud siren blaring outside.

"Nathaniel Duos Ebon! You are in violation of international law! Surrender now!" a voice called over speakerphone.

"Oh god…it's my handler…" Nate whispered.

"Don't worry, Nate. We won't let them take you." I assured, grabbing his shoulder. He smiled at me.

"We have hostages! Ethan Gold and May Birch are being held by us, and we will kill them if you do not cooperate!" Nate's mom…er, handler boomed.

"Nate, any ideas?" Red asked.

"N-no…" Nate mumbled.

I thought about it for a minute. There had to be a way out of this. It was just us, so we'd better—

Oh wait, no it wasn't!

"We stall for time until Hugh and Rosa show up. They can make a distraction, and then we save the day." I announced.

"Who?" Red asked.

"Nate's only two friends. I'll explain later." I stated. Red nodded, and the three of us slowly walked outside.

* * *

"On your knees." The Handler ordered. We all got on the ground.

"Hmm. It's sad, really. I actually began to like you, Nate. I don't think I will after the brainwashing. It might even reduce your effectiveness, but you've proven that it's necessary." She berated. She held up the gun to Red's head.

"Shoot me, you evil bitch!" Red snarled.

"Tch. Quite a mouth on you. But no, we still have to clear the area of civilians first." She remarked.

" _Then_ I'll shoot you."

I waited, and began to panic. What if they didn't show up in time? What if they get caught and it's all in vain? I really couldn't see any other way out of this…

"Civilians out, ma'am." A soldier declared. The Handler smiled.

"Take note, Nate. This is what should happen to those who so much as dare to observe the international police."

*cli-CLICK*

I shut my eyes.

*BLAM!*

I opened them, and shakily turned to Red.

He was fine.

My head turned to the Handler.

There was a hole in her chest.

She fell to the floor, as all the other soldiers were attacked by various Pokémon.

"And _that's_ me unleashing my rage." A dark haired boy quipped.

"Hugh! Thank god!" Nate yelled. Hugh helped us all up.

A girl dropped down from the sky off the back of a Braviary.

"Guys, c'mon!" She shouted. We all ran, and escaped the International Police.

* * *

We all gathered in Castelia City, in front of the nearby boat. Its destination was Kalos, and we had one more ally to pick up.

"Are you two really sure you're not coming?" Nate asked. Rosa and Hugh apparently had other plans.

"We got friends in high places, and an escape route of our own. Wouldn't want to be a bother." Rosa declared, smiling.

"Let's meet up sometime later, alright, Nate?" Hugh spoke.

"I would not have it any other way." Nate replied. They shook hands, and Hugh left with Rosa.

I turned to Nate. "They'll be fine."

He looked at me with a small smile. "I know."

…

…

"Are you two going to keep on gazing into each other's eyes, or are you going to come on?" Ethan snarked.

I blushed a little. "Shut up, fool's gold!" I yelled.

We all boarded the ship, and wondered what the future held for us.

* * *

 _ **To be continued…**_

* * *

 _ **Whew! This was a tough one! Nate is fun to write, but considering he's essentially an OC with how OOC he is, he's also really difficult to write because I have really no source to work with. Oh, and I run the risk of pissing off fans if I don't execute it well. (Heck, even if I do…)**_

 _ **On the subject of him and Dawn (don't lie, you thought it), despite not realizing what exactly I had done until after the fact, I do think this chapter qualifies as AU ship fuel. I'd need someone with a more objective viewpoint to really judge, but I'm hoping to god that they seem like they have (or at least have good potential for) real chemistry. I'm not necessarily going to ship them, but I do think they have the potential to be good friends and I want it to work.**_

 _ **On that note, if you're feeling especially dorky, like I always am, tell me who you might want to see get shipped! Are you a fan of BrendanxMay? RedxYellow? Ethan/GoldxRegigigas? RedxLeaf/Green/Blue in Japan? RedxGary/Blue/Green in Japan? Did I just spoil that Yellow will probably become a major character? Maybe, but with the disclaimer at the beginning of the fanfic, is it really a spoiler?**_

 _ **Yeah, I think Yellow is right up there with Sir-who-will-eventually-appear-in-this-fic Wally for being a maximum cinnamon roll. She's so adorable! I wanna take her home and put things in her mou—**_

 _ **Well, I'm going to stop before the accidental innuendo writes itself. For the record, I meant putting candies in her mouth. Like lollipops and cookies! Oh, and popsicles!**_

 _ **Guys? Why are you looking at me with such disgu—DAMMIT!**_

 _ **Well, enough digressing. Next region will only be one chapter rather than two, for the sake of variety, pacing, and because I feel like Serena would be willing to skip the foreplay and jump into the action right away. So, make sure you're nice and ready for that.**_

…

 _ **I'm not a pervert, I swear!**_

 _ **Thanks for reading, and for now, I take my leave.**_


	8. The Calm

**_"The Calm" (Red's Perspective)_**

Red's team: Charizard/Vileplume/Lapras/Snorlax/Clefable/Hitmonlee

Nate's team (Not yet seen fully): Samurott/Golurk/Volcanora /Reuniclus/Druddigon/Galvantula

* * *

As we arrived in the Kalos Region, I couldn't help but lose myself in the scenery a little bit. Kalos was quite beautiful, with a keen eye for natural preservation and architecture. The nature of the area calmed me somewhat with its serenity.

I stood gazing on the beaches of Shalour City, content to bask in the sun for a time. The wind flowed over me, and I settled myself comfortably on the sand as I listened to the crashing waves. A swarm of Wingulls, not common in this region, flew overheard, and I imagined what their destination might be.

Charizard sat alongside me, happy to see me finally having a moment of real relaxation again. I pet his back as he settled in himself, his leathery skin creating a reminder to me of when things were less gloomy and serious. I could tell he felt the same memories, and together we reminisced about the good days, behind us for now, but not forgotten.

"You remember Blaine's gym, right buddy?"

"Zoooorr…" Charizard nodded.

"It was an amazing battle. I still remember you charging right at the Arcanine right through his fire blast. We were both focused single-mindedly on winning. And the look on Blaine's face?"

Charizard gave me a wide grin.

"Yeah. It was priceless." I said, smiling.

A moment passed.

"Do you think we'll have times like that again?" I asked. I looked directly at the partner I had known so long. His long snout point downward, then back at me before nodding.

"I hope so, buddy. I hope so." I breathed.

And then, for the next hour or so, we gazed out over the beach, content to bask in the sun for a time. The wind flowed over us, and we settled ourselves comfortably in the sand as the waves created an enchanting melody for our souls.

* * *

"Red?" Dawn called softly. She was behind me, though I didn't know how long she had been there. Turning to face her, it felt like I had been sitting there for an eternity and yet only a second.

"Hey." I replied.

"It's time to go to Vaniville. We need to recruit Serena, right?"

I looked back over the Shalour beach with a sigh.

"Alright," I agreed, getting up, "let's get the others and fly over."

We travelled back into the heart of Shalour City, which, in sharp contrast to the beach, was quite bustling and active. Making our way back to the Pokémon Center through all the skaters and businessmen, we greeted Nate, who was waiting outside with his Samurott.

"Where'd the others run off to?" Dawn asked.

Nate shrugged. "I think they might've gone off to eat, but they could be anywhere at this point."

I frowned. This was going to take a while.

"I'll go looking for them. Hopefully, they'll be easy enough to track." I offered. I turned the corner and checked a few restaurants, to no avail.

 _"Damn. Really wish I had asked for Ethan's number…."_

I wandered around the city for a while, admiring some of the architecture. I passed by the city's Pokémon Gym. This city was home to the Mega Evolution successor, Korrina, who was also the gym leader.

 _"Hey, maybe they went to go meet her."_

I entered the Gym, noticing the skate track. I stepped over it and walked inside. I looked around for a bit until it was clear that Ethan and May were not here.

"Wonderful…." I muttered to myself. I turned to leave when a skater bumped into me.

"HYAA! Battle me for the right to challenge Korrina!" he shouted.

"No thanks, skater boy. See ya later…." I grumbled. As I walked away, I turned my head back.

"Boy." I finished with a smirk.

"Crappy song references won't save you from my fighting-type Pokémon!" He shouted hammily.

"Whatever." I deadpanned.

We battled, and I defeated his singular Heracross in all of two seconds with an Aerial Ace from Charizard.

"Can I leave now? I'm not interested in a badge."

"I dunno," a voice cut in, "it could be fun to see you curb stomp the gym."

* * *

I turned to see a blonde girl matching Serena's description walking in while casually eating an apple.

I raised an eyebrow. "Are you Serena Yvonne?"

"Yup! Nice to meet you. You're Red, the Kanto champion?"

I shook her hand. "That's correct."

"That's pretty awesome! I've never met a champion from another region before." She smiled as she took another chomp from her apple.

"I wish I could say I'm here for leisure, but I'm here on business."

She swallowed her food. "Yeah, I know the feeling..."

She paused.

"Well, I won't bother you anymore, but I'd like to hang sometime! I think we region champs need to stick together. See ya—"

"Wait."

Serena tilted her head. "What?"

"I actually came here to get help from _you_."

She stared at me blankly for a bit. Then…

"Ok..."

"I'm not sure if you've heard, but my region is under siege by a new Team Rocket, and they're more violent and dangerous than ever. They have deadly weapons, and a ruthless new demeanor. I'm recruiting region champions to help me fight back. I would like for you to help me, too." I explained.

Serena looked away, then back at me. "This is more dangerous than Flare…"

"Yeah. I'm not going to force you to—"

"Don't worry; I'm going to help."

"…really? That's it?"

"Hmm?"

I paused. "Sorry. It's just that everyone else I recruited made me run an errand for them first."

"Well, if you're offering, I need to pick up my dry cleaning." She joked.

We both snickered a little bit before pausing.

"…"

"Just…promise me I'll get back home." Serena stated.

I paused.

"I mean," she continued, "I know that this is dangerous. Team Flare tried to murder everyone, and Rocket looks like they're trying to do the same. And they gotta be stopped. And there really aren't many others who could do it…but…"

"I understand. I'm asking a lot. But I will not let anything horrible happen to you. Or any one of my friends. Not ever again."

My hands were balled into fists, and I could feel my heartbeat speed up. If I let anything happen to anyone….

"Um…Red?"

I shook my head.

"Sorry, Serena. What is it?"

"I'd like to talk it over with my friends. Come meet me in my hometown, Vaniville, okay?" she declared.

I nodded. "That's a good idea. I'll see you in a bit, and I'll bring a few friends of my own."

She smiled, and flew away using her Noivern.

* * *

I walked back to the Pokemon Center, where everyone seemed to be waiting for me.

"Red! Where were you?" May grumbled.

"Looking for you."

Ethan began chuckling at that.

"But, I also ended up meeting Serena."

Everyone turned to me, eyebrows raised.

"What did she say?" Dawn asked.

"She wanted to talk to her friends and think it over, and wanted us to meet her in Vaniville Town."

"Huh. You've been busy….ish?" Ethan quipped.

"Well, I see no more reason to waste time," Nate began, "so we should proceed to Va—"

Well, since nobody else said anything, I guess we should go to Vaniville now. Y'know, get it out of the way." Ethan cut in.

"Amen. See you there, Red." May agreed. They hopped on Skarmory and Flygon, and flew off into the distance before another word could be said.

"…"

I turned to Nate.

"Give them time. They're a bit…eh…"

"Rude, is what they are." Dawn finished for me.

"I was going to say 'emotional'."

"No. _You_ can be emotional. _They_ are just plain rude."

"Well…hot blooded, then."

Dawn frowned. "That's no excuse."

"Maybe not, but I'm certain they'll come around." I said. I turned back to Nate, then to Dawn.

"Let's go. We shouldn't keep Serena waiting."

We sent out Charizard, Togekiss, and Golurk, and flew to Vaniville Town.

* * *

We landed next to Ethan and May, who were waiting outside a large house. They waved hello, but seemingly only to me.

"This Serena's house?" I asked. Ethan nodded.

"She told us to wait," May explained, "but I'm getting impatient."

"Maybe go for a jog, and return in ten minutes?" I suggested.

May nodded, and, sending out her Manetric to run with her, bolted to the nearby route. I smirked and turned to Ethan.

"Hey, can I talk to you for a bit?"

"Sure." He replied. We walked to a nearby bench.

"What's up? Do you need something?" Ethan asked.

"No, it's not that. I wanted to talk about Nate."

He rolled his eyes, but was willing to hear me. "Go on." He said, grunting a bit.

"I totally get why you don't trust him; he attacked us, with an intent to kill. I don't trust him too much yet either. But there's a difference between being wary and being a dick, and he has a right to prove himself." I argued. Ethan sighed.

"Yeah, I get that. I'm still a bit bitter, and I've been too hard on him. But listen, I'm a strategist in my spare time, and everything about him so far screams 'risk.' He's dangerous to us."

"…Okay, Ethan, think of it this way…"

Ethan nodded for me to proceed.

"We need his access to government gear. He probably knows where we could get some, and we need bulletproof materials. Besides, outside of it being weird, what makes his story seem false?"

Ethan thought about it for a moment, then sighed.

"Fine. I'll give him a CHANCE, but only because I have to." He groaned.

"That's all I'm asking for." I smiled.

"May's gonna be harder to convince."

I shrugged. "I can handle it."

At that moment, Dawn called to us. Serena's friends wanted to talk to us in person. Ethan and I walked to Serena's house.

* * *

Ethan, Dawn, Nate, and I all sat down around a large table. Serena smiled, and sat down at the seat across from me.

"Hey! Glad you could make it."

I paused. "Well, it's not like I had anything else to be doing."

She nodded, then turned to my party.

"I'm Serena, Kalos Champ."

"The name's Ethan Gold. Yes, THE Ethan Gold, of Johto."

"Dawn Berlitz. A pleasure to make your acquaintance, but please refer to me as 'lady'."

"Nate Ebon, second champion of Unova. Nice to meet you."

Suddenly, something slammed into the house door. Serena opened it, and May stumbled in.

"Yo…sorry I'm late…" May managed, dazed.

Ethan helped her sit down, and Serena introduced her friends.

"This is Trevor." she began, motioning to a short boy with puffy hair. He stared at us a bit timidly for a moment before speaking.

"It's cool to meet you," Trevor greeted, "and I wish it could have been under better circumstances."

Serena continued, motioning to a much larger man. His hair was black, and though he was somewhat fat, he wore the weight well.

"This is Tierno."

"Hey, dudes…I'm sorry to hear about Kanto." Tierno offered.

Finally, Serena motioned to a short girl who had just entered the room.

"And this is—"

"OH.

MY.

GOD!" the other girl broke in.

Serena grinned. "Shauna, these are the—"

"It's really you! Oh Arceus, I can't believe it's really you!" Shauna shouted to me. I felt a sweat drop roll down my forehead.

Suddenly, faster than my eyes could track, she ran to me and grabbed my hand, shaking me with tremendous force.

"OMIGOD YOU'RE REALLY RED MY NAME'S SHAUNA I'M YOUR BIGGEST FAN IT'S SO COOL TO FINALLY MEET YOU IN PERSON WHAT'S KANTO LIKE DO YOU KNOW BLUE PERSONALLY WHAT'S HE LIKE I YOU'RE YOUR POKEMON MY FAVORITE OUT OF YOUR TEAM IS LAPRAS ARE YOU SINGLE—"

"S-Meister, simmer down!" The large kid yelled.

Shauna stopped. She let go of me and put her hands behind her back.

"U-um…sorry…."

I was dizzy from the noise and shaking. "It's…it's fine…"

*WHUMP*

I fell onto the floor.

"Guys…I'm gonna need a minute…."

* * *

After managing to recuperate, I sat down at the table and began to discuss more specifics of our mission.

"Yes, there will be real, lethal weapons." I answered.

Serena paused. "Well…nothing we haven't faced before."

"You know this is different! A group of Flares with clubs doesn't equate to an army with rifles! How do you plan to protect yourself?" Trevor pointed out.

"I'm sure Red has that covered." Serena replied, turning to me.

I paused for a moment. I turned to Nate, who gave a slight shrug.

"Fortunately, he contacted me," Nate began, "and I'm a former member of Interpol. We have access to bullet-resistant suits, made from a treated rubber. They won't stop everything, but they are rated to protect against most rifles fifteen times."

Trevor frowned. "Rated to protect fifteen times?"

"It's a ballistic rating system. Protection on the first 15 attacks is near certain. After that, the chance of failing to stop a bullet rises." Nate explained.

"That's the best you can do? Why not a bulletproof vest?" Shauna asked. Nate facepalmed.

"There is no such thing as bullet- _proof_ ," Dawn explained, "only bullet-resistant. What Nate described _is_ a bulletproof vest."

Shauna frowned, but nodded. Tierno scratched his chin.

"I get that you can't wear anything with even more protection because of weight…but how will you fight them?" he asked.

"Armored Pokémon will be barely tickled by most bullets, so they can sponge up hits while we take down any goons." May offered.

"And Red has a gun!" Ethan added.

"I actually think I could get some of those too…" Nate murmured.

"That's insane!" Trevor yelled.

"Eh…it's not too bad. If Chesnaught can shrug off a tank shell, what's a bullet gonna do?" Serena rebutted.

"What about the criminals' own Pokémon?" Trevor continued.

"We can keep the unarmored ones nearby more armored ones, in teams that cover each other's weaknesses. These Pokémon will take out any attackers." Dawn suggested.

"If worst meets worst, I could shoot their limbs." Nate added.

I paused for a moment.

"This seems like a solid plan. Now, it won't always work perfectly, but we're going to take every precaution to keep everyone as safe as possible. That's not just a promise, it's a pledge." I declared.

Trevor winced. He seemed quite angry.

"…Serena, they need your help," he said as he turned to leave, "so you should go." He walked outside and shut the door behind him.

* * *

Everyone paused for a moment.

"Kinda rude." May blurted.

"Yeah, but please forgive him. He's under a bit of stress." Serena explained.

I nodded, and the room stayed silent for a bit.

"…"

"…anyway, I think I've decided to help you. You seem like you're being careful as you can…" Serena started. She took a deep breath.

"Sorry. I'm nervous."

"No need to be sorry; this is worth fretting over. But I'm glad to hear you're on board." I assured.

Serena smiled. Suddenly, Shauna snapped her fingers.

"Hey! We should have a going away party for you, Serena! Maybe it'll ease your stress before you take off!" she suggested.

"That's a good idea! Red, if it's alright with you…"

"It's fine." I answered. I felt like I needed the party, too.

"Nice! Okay, let's do something…dramatic!" Serena beamed, grinning.

* * *

Just before the party, we went to look for Trevor, and I happened upon him on Route 2, skipping stones into the lake. I decided to take a seat beside him.

"Hey, I'm sorry to spring this on you." I began.

He gave me a funny look. "Well, you had to do what you had to do, and it is Serena's choice, so I have no reason to be angry…."

"But…you are."

He looked away.

"It's good that you're worried about your friend. I mean, it shows how much you care." I tried. He shook his head.

"Listen…did you know that Calem, one of our best friends, went missing a few months back?"

I paused.

He continued. "He was a prodigy battler, and being the son of the famous Rhyhorn racer Grace on top of that made him and instant celebrity. But, the media was cruel to him after a time, and he drove himself into obscurity."

"…"

"Now, I'm pretty sure he's OK, but I'm still scared. I don't know for certain, and he isn't here to tell me. I really didn't want to have to feel that way about Serena too." Trevor explained.

"I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault," Trevor assured me, "you just have to protect your region. But…"

"I promise you, she'll be OK. Now, come on; she wanted a going away party, and I doubt she'd feel it's complete without you."

He nodded, giving a bittersweet smile. "Alright."

* * *

When I found myself alone a few moments later, as Trevor left to the party, I found myself gazing at my reflection in the nearby stream, my mind swirling with a mess of thoughts.

 _"This…this is it…right?"_

I was surprised I had made it this far. That felt weird; I didn't really get surprised by my own victory before. Of course, I did change quite a bit since then. I'm really not the same person I used to be…

 _"…"_

 _"Who am I?"_

It seemed like a silly question when it first popped into my head, but the more I thought about it, the graver it became. Obviously, I knew my name, my profession, my hobbies, and my lineage. But after that, I found myself asking question I didn't have the answers to.

 _"Am I a good person, or a bad one?"_

 _"What kinds of emotions define me?"_

 _"What do I aspire to be?"_

 _"Why am I living this life?"_

The only answers I could give were "I don't know". These used to be easy answers, but now they were the most difficult questions of my life. I don't know who I am…

…but I'm not who I was.

* * *

I rejoined my friends at an arcade, where Ethan and Tierno were currently facing off in a game of Dragon Dance Revolution. Their movements were very fast, and it surprised me how quick Tierno could actually move.

Smirking slightly, I wandered around the arcade for a bit. Game machines lined the halls of the building, and some of them looked pretty fun.

I sighed. I really wasn't in the mood anymore, and the jarringly different atmosphere was making me feel anxious. I turned to leave.

"Heya, Red! I almost thought you weren't coming!" Serena shouted. I stopped and turned around.

"…were you waiting for me?"

"No, but I'm glad you came! I mean, I figured I'd want to know you a bit more personally before we run off to save the world together. So, just for tonight, I want you to forget about everything that's happening."

I nodded slowly.

She switched topics informally. "So, outside of your duties as a Champion, what are your hobbies?"

"Huh? Kinda abrupt…"

"So what? As cheesy as it is, 'keep calm and carry on' is a good creed. Sometimes, you just need to relax. Anyway, hobbies?"

"…"

I thought about it for a moment.

"If I never were able to be a trainer, I always would've wanted to be an engineer."

"Really? That's kinda interesting. Why?"

"Well, technology always seemed really cool to me when I was young. I wanted to learn how everything worked. In that regard, the reason I loved the idea of being an engineer was the same reason I loved Pokémon battles."

"I'm a sky athlete in my spare time." Serena said.

I raised an eyebrow. "So, your one of those trainers with a flying suit?"

"I own one," Serena answered, "but I don't use it for battling much. Just workouts and pleasant skies."

I nodded. We both fell awkwardly quiet

Serena didn't give up. "Hey, let's try an arcade game!"

I looked off to the side. "I dunno. I'm kinda…down."

"Well, some virtual shenanigans will make you feel up."

She grabbed me by the arm and led me to a shooter game. I had played a few of these as a kid, and I remember being pretty good at them. I picked up one gun, and Serena picked up the other.

I glanced over in her direction. She glanced over in mine.

I smirked, and narrowed my eyes onto the screen.

*PING* *BAM BAM* *PEW* *PANG*

Serena and I slowly aligned our gameplay. She had better reaction time but I had better aim, so she took down tougher enemies with exploitable weaknesses while I took down the weaker and smaller types.

*KA-BOOOM* *ZAP* *ZOT* *BANG*

We looked at each other and laughed like idiots after completing the final stage. Suddenly, the screen flashed, and one last boss appeared; a Mecha Giratina.

*TATATATATATATATA*

I focused my fire on the boss's incoming projectiles, shooting them out of the sky before they could hurt either of us.

*THOOM* THOOM* THOOM*

Serena launched rocket after rocket directly into Giratina's Griseous Orb, eventually shattering it.

I glanced over at her for a split second. "Should I use the—"

"Yeah! NOW!"

I activate the supernova weapon, and the whole screen filled with fire.

"…"

Suddenly, the screen flashed, displaying the following message:

 **Congrats** **Red** **and** **Serena** **, YOU WINNERS HAD THEN WON!**

We both just stared for a moment.

"…"

"Hmph."

"Heh."

We both looked at each other.

"BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"They-they didn't even care! Oh Arceus! I'm-I'm crying….HAHA!" Serena giggled.

"D-do you like, not have freaking…freaking SPELLCHECK on your computer?" I laughed.

"How many arcades, Red?"

"What?"

"How many arcades got this stupid, misspelled rail shooter, and just put it out like any normal game?" Serena joked.

I began laughing so hard that my whole body was swinging around.

"Why has the god of gaming forsaken us?" I jested.

"Someone save us from an eternity of shitty grammar!" she kidded.

We both continued laughing. Laughing and laughing and laughing and laughing and laughing until we finally managed to settle down.

* * *

We were both sitting against the side of the arcade wall.

"Serena?"

"Yeah, Red?" She turned to me.

"Thank you." I smiled a wide smile, wider than I meant to, but I couldn't help myself.

"Ha! You're welcome, Red. That wasn't so bad, now was it?" She replied, grinning.

"It was the first time in so long I just had some…some plain old _fun_. And I am happy to have spent it with you." I answered.

Serena blushed, ever so slightly. "Hehe…thanks. It really means a lot to me to hear you say that."

* * *

Later that night, we were all preparing to board the plane to Kanto. Serena said goodbye to her friends, and they wished all of us luck before we boarded the plane.

I sat in the middle seat. Serena was to my left, May to my right, Nate directly behind me, Ethan to the left of Nate, and Dawn to the right of Nate.

"So, O' fearless leader, are you ready?" Ethan joked.

I paused.

"…"

"…"

"…as much as I'll ever be." I replied.

And for once, in relation to this action, this mission in which I was forced to carry out to stop the deaths of others?

I smirked. Because I knew I had my friends at my back and in my Poke Balls. Because nothing Team Rocket could do would stop me now. Because…I was ready. And it was time for the world to see what we can do.

* * *

 ** _To Be Continued…._**

* * *

 ** _I'M SO SORRY I HAVEN'T BEEN UPLOADING! I've been busy with school projects and finals, and then Overwatch came out, and it was a masterpiece, and…_**

 ** _*takes a deep breath*_**

 ** _However, rest assured that I can now resume, and, for your trouble of waiting, expect Chapters 9 and 10 to drop today!_**

 ** _Yup, this was a slow one. But, as one may have guessed, I going to have SHIT get REAL in chapter 9, so I decided that a chapter-action break wasn't so bad._**

 ** _I really like Trevor, actually. Maybe I'll write a story about him someday. Who knows? For now, all we know for sure is that the gang's all here! Time to make some noise!_**

 ** _….right?_**

 ** _Well, if anyone here has paid any attention to any of my end-blurbs, you would know that Wally is actually going to be the seventh member of this team. But where is he?_**

 ** _He will make his debut in Chapter 10. He's not the only one who will make his main story debut either in that chapter, but the other one you'll just have to wait and see._**

 ** _Come to think of it, two other characters make their big debut in Chapter 9! Is it a conspiracy? Yes._**

 ** _Oh, and finally, I wanted to note that I've been having trouble uploading new documents. My solution was to overwrite existing ones, but I need to talk to Fanfiction; They're saying my word docs aren't word docs._**

 ** _As always, thanks for reading, and for now, I take me leave._**


	9. Carving out the Headstone

**_"Carving out the Headstone" (Red's Perspective)_**

Red's team: Charizard/Vileplume/Lapras/Snorlax/Clefable/Hitmonlee

Serena's team: Chesnaught/Tyrantrum/Pyroar/Claydol/Tentacruel/Dedenne

Ethan's team: Tysplosion/Kabutops/Tyranitar/Skarmory/Bellossom/Gengar

May's team: Blaziken/Aggron/Flygon/Breloom/Manetric/Crawdaunt

Dawn's team: Empoleon/Rapidash/Lopunny/Mamoswine/Togekiss/Lucario

Nate's team: Samurott/Golurk/Volcanora/Reuniclus/Druddigon/Galvantula

(All are listed; It's rather important for the chapter.)

* * *

The plane dropped us off in Lavender Town. We quickly moved to the Pokemon Center, and checked the recent Kanto news. Headlines like "The Great Gray City under Siege!" and "Team Rocket stops the Rock!" show me once again that news reporters are horrible, sick people who make a joke out of literal terrorism.

Oh, and that Pewter City was under attack.

Before heading directly into the firefight, Nate led us to a small, hidden location. It looked like an Interpol bunker. We went inside, and gathered various tools and gear. For one thing, everyone found a bullet resistant suit that fit.

I stared at the suit for a moment. It was mostly a dark blue, with some streaks of a dulled red running throughout it.

 _"This is it…"_

I walked into a side closet. I removed my backpack, then my jacket and shirt, and slipped on the suit.

 _"Rather tight."_

I put my clothes back on over it, and stared at the wall for just a second. Doubts were beginning to creep into my head. What if this was just going to get all my friends hurt? It was dangerous, and I wasn't sure if I was rea—

*THWIP*

An object fell out of my backpack, hitting the side of the closet door before landing on the floor.

I reached down to pick it up. It was a picture.

 _"This was…this was my last picture of Raichu. Just a week before…"_

My hand began shaking as I started to breathe heavily. I stared at the picture, I'm not sure for how long exactly, but until I saw a tear fall unto it.

I reached up to touch my face, realizing I was crying, and wiped the tears away. I put the picture back into my backpack.

 _"I'll get them for you, Raichu! I'll make them pay!"_

* * *

Walking into the main room of the bunker, I waited for everyone to meet me there. Nate was already there, cleaning the chamber of a handgun. I looked to the back of the bunker, and May was the first one to walk out. She cracked her knuckles.

"I'm getting anxious, Red." She said with a smirk.

"Just wait for the others."

Serena was next, walking with her Chesnaught and putting metal gauntlets and a helmet on him for extra protection. She rubbed his belly, and he purred deeply. Turning to me, she took a deep breath.

"We're ready."

"Chesnau!"

I nodded, and saw Ethan jogging out behind her. He held in his hand an energy baton that he swiped from the weapons stock of the International Police.

"All set." He said with a grin.

Finally, Dawn walked in, adjusting her hat. She seemed a bit uneasy about the whole thing, but she also wouldn't let that stop her. She sweeped the area with her eyes before grabbing her bag.

"I suppose we should get going." She proclaimed.

I took a deep breath.

 _"Raichu…._

 _I WILL NOT FAIL YOU!"_

* * *

We touched down in Pewter City on the backs of our flying Pokémon. A wretched smell of smoke and burning flesh filled the air as a swarm of people ran desperately from a large tank-like vehicle. The police had already arrived on the scene, and judging by the conditions of their cars, they had already failed.

Immediately, we sent out our defensive powerhouses. Serena sent out Chesnaught, May sent out Arrgon, Nate and Ethan kept their Golurk and Skarmory out, while Ethan also sent out his Tyranitar. Finally, Dawn sent out her Empoleon.

Next, we followed up with complimentary Pokémon. Dawn's Togekiss took position over Ethan's Tyranitar, using its fairy/flying type to defend against fighting and grass Pokemon, and Nate's Samurott added protection from ground types.

Golurk was aided by Nate's Galvantula and Dawn's Lucario. Empoleon got protection from Nate's Druddigon and Dawn's Mamoswine. Chesnaught got help from Ethan's Kabutops and May's Blaziken. Agrron got help from Ethan's Gengar and my Clefable. Finally, Skarmory got help from May's Crawdaunt and Serena's Claydol.

* * *

"Ethan, Dawn, and Serena! I want you three to manage all the Pokemon!" I ordered.

"You sure? It could be a mess!" Serena asked.

"Yes! Nate, May, let's take the fight to them directly! They'll push back the enemy and we'll pick them off!"

"Roger that!" May replied.

"As ordered!" Nate shouted back.

The three of us hopped onto Charizard's back, and we flew around the Team Rocket forces. Once Ethan began launching the Pokemon assault, we landed to the left of the Rockets.

"Shit man! These trainers sure know how to fuck with our shit!" One Rocket said.

"Yeah. If only we had a—"

"Charizard! Flare Blitz!" I yelled.

"Oh! A Charizard's Flare Blitz would be perfe—"

*WHAM*

The rockets flew into the air with their Weezings, hitting a brick wall. Several other rockets turned around.

"Holy fuck!"

One pulled out a rifle, pointing it at Charizard, but May lept onto him. She clocked him in the face several times.

Another rocket pulled his rifle out on her. He fired, but Nate held up a broken car door to shield her, and used the empty window to fire his own handgun at the Rocket.

"Guh!"

"LAAAAR!" boomed an opposing Larion. It charged at Nate.

*bonk*

I threw an empty soda can I found on the ground at its head. Enraged, Larion charged toward me.

I dropped a Pokeball on the ground and rolled out of the way. As the Larion changed direction, the Pokeball opened.

"HITMOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON!" *THWACK!*

Larion went flying, skidding against the road before stopping, fainted. I ran over to Hitmonlee, patting him on the head.

"Nice job!"

"Hit Hyuuut!"

I turned around to see more Rockets running in. They wielded large cannons.

"Volcanora, target marked!"

"Manetric, attack!"

Nate and May sent out their Pokemon, unleashing a maelstrom of lightning and fire on the enemies.

"ARR!"

"It burns!"

"Dammit dammit DAMMIT!"

Suddenly, a Haxorus charged at us through the assault. It knocked away Volcanora with ease and headed directly for Nate.

"Hitmonlee!"

Hitmonlee threw out a long kick, but the Haxorus ignored the blow. Nate began firing at it with his handgun, with only limited success.

I ran forward, hoping that there was something I could do to stop Haxorus in time…

…but I didn't need to.

A mighty Steelix erupted from the dirt directly in front of Nate. It grabbed the Haxorus with its huge jaws, and threw him into a nearby building.

I followed up on its attack. "Charizard! Dragon Claw!" I ordered. With one clean swipe, the Haxorus was knocked out.

* * *

Breathing a sigh of relief, I turned to the Steelix.

"Who's your trainer?"

"Someone who would want you to be more careful, Red."

I turned my head at the familiar voice to see Brock, Pewter City gym leader and one of my best friends, standing behind me.

"B-brock! It's you!"

"Well, with my city under attack, where else would I be?" He gave me a wide grin.

"I dunno. Hitting on Nurse Joy?"

"Shut up…."

Nate and May walked over to me and Brock, just as curious about the Steelix.

"You're the Pewter City Gym Leader, Brock, correct?" Nate inquired.

"Yup."

"But I thought you used Rock Types, like Roxanne." May pointed out.

Brock sighed. "Look, for the last time, my Onix evolved, okay? How many times do I gotta say it…"

"So," May continued, "can you lend us a hand?"

"Of course. It's good to see people fighting back, and I'm glad to help! Oh, who are you two, anyway?"

"I'm May Birch, Hoenn Sub-Champion, and this is Nate, Champion of Unova!"

"Dude…" Brock mumbled. He was rather taken aback by this.

He turned to me. "You've been busy."

"Tell me about it."

* * *

We turned our attention back to the opposing Rockets. A squad of them charged in with melee weapons while a second squad held back, using guns and several Magnemite to fight from a distance.

One Rocket attacked Brock with a taser, but Brock knocked it out of his hands, and, with his rock-like strength, punched him across the street. Meanwhile, Nate rolled under the gunfire, sendng in Volcanora to eliminate all the gunmen and opposing Pokemon.

May, meanwhile, charged into the crowd of Rocket grunts, forcing them apart and into the air using Flygon's Sandstorm attack. From there, she used her Breloom and Manetric to pick off any Rockets they could aim at.

I flew on my Charizard's back, and made it my personal mission to disrupt and destroy particularly heavy weaponry. I saw the first heavy gun, aimed directly at the Chesnaught—Kabutops—Blaziken trio.

"Charizard, Flare Blitz!" I roared. I felt the wind whip by my face as Charizard sped up.

*BOOM*

One crash, and the cannon was a crater. We skidded to a halt on the ground, and turned to face any rocket grunts.

"Hyaa!" one of them yelled. He threw a grenade toward us. Thinking quickly, I threw a Pokeball at the grenade, encapsulating it and causing only the Pokeball to explode.

I rolled to the side, and opened fire on the grunt with my rifle. He fell to the ground, and I quickly moved to cover alongside my Charizard as a hail of bullets passed over our heads.

"Haaar?" Charizard grunted.

"Not sure," I replied, "but maybe they came from another heavy gun."

I peeked over the edge for a split second before ducking back down.

 _"Damn. They've got a new heavy gun AND they're prepping a grenade launcher"_

Trying a new approach, I called Ethan with my phone.

"Need something?" he asked.

"I need Chesnaught!"

Within seconds, I saw Chesnaught burst through the enemy lines, deflecting enemy fire with his Spiky Shield before joining me behind cover.

I let out a small smirk. "Listen, when they fire a grenade, use your shield to knock them back." I ordered. Chesnaught nodded, and stomped on the ground forcefully to divert the Rockets' attention.

Meanwhile, I turned to Charizard. Climbing on his back, I took an aerial postion over Chesnaught, Kabutops, and Blaziken. The moment Chesnaught knocked the first grenade back, I flew direct over the rockets.

"Aerial Ace!"

Charizard cut the base of the grenade launcher, and I kicked it into the air. We turned back around, and Charizard finished up with a crushing bite, tearing the gun in half.

Brock's Steelix began to use earthquake, shaking up the battlefield and throwing most fighters off balance. Then, Manetric and Volcanora, who were stationed on a rooftop, began raining fire and lighting on the entire force of Team Rocket.

"Arrgh! That does it! EVERYONE, FALL BACK!" a white-haired admiral screamed. Hurriedly, every single member of the group began to retreat.

"You don't get off that easy!" I yelled. I ordered Charizard to pursue them, and we began flying in their direction. We went into a dive, Flare Blitz aimed at a group of targets.

"You're going down!"

Very suddenly, however, our forward charged was stopped.

"..?"

I turned around quickly, and my jaw dropped at what I saw.

"RE...GI...GIGAS!" the titan boomed.

* * *

With violent force, he slammed us into a nearby building, and we stumbled to the ground. I couldn't tell if anything was broken, but I did know that I couldn't move.

"Ch…Chari-z-zard…are you…?"

"Zo…ooor…."

We laid there amongst the bricks for a moment, and the world fell eerily silent.

 _"Damn…damnit. I can't…"_

I pulled out my phone, and did the one thing I could do. I pulled up everyone's messaging and sent them a text:

 _"team rocket has regigigas. Careful!"_

I breathed a heavy sigh, the wind from my lungs painfully being forced from my chest.

"…"

"…I'm sorry, buddy."

"Char…charizar…"

"Well, I…*cough*…I'm sorry to you...t-to, but that was f-for…"

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see him nod a bit.

 _"…"_

 _"…I'm so sorry….."_

* * *

 ** _Mid-chapter POV flip!_** ** _(May's perspective)_**

* * *

Brock, Nate and I tousled with Team Rocket's toxic artillery; a whole squad of Muks, for the sole purpose of flinging goo at people. I only had Manetric, Flygon, and Breloom on me, so it was kinda a hassle, but Steelix's earthquake combined with Flygon's sandstorm seems to have done the trick.

The only Rockets still around were snipers, and to his credit, Nate picked them off handily. It seemed like we had won.

"Yahoo! That was awesome! Really let me cut loose, ya know?" I shouted.

"I don't think so. Look at the damage, and who knows how many were hurt!" Brock retorted.

I frowned. "Well yeah, but that isn't our fault. WE stopped it. And THAT feels good."

He seemed to lighten up a bit. "Hm…I mean…I guess it was pretty fun."

"The first victory is often among the sweetest." Nate said suddenly. I jumped a little at the surprise.

I whipped my head to him. "Were you _hiding_? Don't do that!" I snapped.

He paused. "Sorry. Just…not good at being social…I guess."

I still didn't like him and wanted to get angrier, but I sighed. He was a big help today, and I was in a good mood.

"Everyone, let's CELEBR—"

*bzzt**bzzt*

I looked at my phone. Red had sent me a text. I quickly navigated to my messages, and it seemed like Red thought Regigigas was here.

I found myself confused by this. Wouldn't we have seen such a large Pokémon by now? Or at least heard it? Or even seen a giant Rocket-Brand cage? This isn't a Pokémon that can just appear from thin air…

Suddenly, Ethan, Serena and Dawn came running our way, with Nate's Pokemon and my own in tow. Naturally, I returned my team, and Nate did the same.

"You seem a little hurried." I joked.

"Well, we have a good reason." Ethan replied, smirking. He grabbed my arm to get me to start running, letting go once we were all in motion.

"I really doubt Red actually saw Regigigas, guys." I declared.

Serena looked at me. "Well…"

*THOOM*

*THOOM*

*THOOM*

Massive footsteps sounded throughout the city, and I found myself very nervous.

"Damn. How'd they pull that off?"

"That's the thing; Nobody knows!" Serena answered.

"Huh?"

"They didn't teleport it in, and they didn't carry it in, and it certainly didn't come from a Pokeball."

"Then how the hell is it here?"

"I don't know," Ethan began, "but we're going to have to fight it."

I nodded, and ran into a nearby building. Serena followed, and we travelled over several flights of stairs to reach the rooftop. A quick look across to the adjacent roof, and I saw Dawn, Nate, and Ethan positioned there. Brock stayed on the ground.

*THOOM*

Nate loaded his gun, for all the good it could really do, and sent out Golurk to his side. Ethan passed out Potions to Dawn and Nate, while Dawn looked like she was doing some last-minute research on the titan.

*THOOM*

*THOOM*

Serena handed me a group of Hyper Potions, and I thanked her. I sent out my entire team to heal them, but only kept Blaziken out and returned the rest.

*THOOM*

I took a deep breath…

"Enemy contact!" Nate roared. Golurk immediately charged to Regigigas, and its immunity to Normal Type attacks countered Regigigas's Crush Grip.

"Blaziken, High Jump Kick!" I yelled. Blaziken lept at the enemy as I sent out Breloom to my side.

"Ready your Focus Punch!" I ordered. Breloom began to focus as I flew directly into the fray on Flygon's back.

Ethan's Bellossom poured sleep powder onto the opponent, but Regigigas swatted her away.

"Bell!" Ethan shrieked. He ran after his wounded Pokémon. Meanwhile, Dawn focused her mind.

"Lopunny! MEGA EVOLVE!"

Dawn and her Lopunny both became enveloped in the Mega Radiation, and Lopunny changed form. The Pokémon immediately sprang into action, attacking Regigigas with a High Jump Kick.

"REEEEEEEEEHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" The titan boomed. He ripped a building off the ground and threw it at Lopunny. Brock's Golem was able to destroy some of the building, but not all, and Lopunny fainted.

I continued circling around the enemy, but I saw an opening near his eyes.

"Flygon! Use Sandstorm, and make sure it gets in his face!"

"Gon gon!"

A burst of sand launched toward Regigigas, covering his eyes.

"Regi! REGI!"

Nate used this opportunity to take aim.

*BANG*

"ROOOG!" Regigias screamed. He grasped his eye as blood leaked from between his massive fingers.

Ethan's Tyranitar came to finish the job, a look of raw vengeance coursing in its eyes. Already Mega Evolved, it used Thrash, ripping and tearing at its massive opponent until the titan collapsed on the ground.

* * *

We all approached it now, carefully but surely, and returned any wounded Pokémon.

"…"

"…What should we do?" Dawn asked.

"I'll have my fellow Gym Leaders help me take care of it." Brock declared. He walked closer to Regigigas.

*SLAM*

Brock was smashed into the ground as Regigigas woke up, wounded greatly, but angered far more. It grabbed his Steelix and slammed it into every nearby structure.

"GIGAAAAAAAAAS!"

He threw the Steelix at me, though Serena's Chesnaught stopped it, and I sent out Crawdaunt.

"Hydro Pump!"

Crawdaunt coated the titan in water, and I sent out Manetric. I looked to Nate and Serena, who both also had Electric types.

"Everyone, shock him!"

Dedenne, Manetric, and Galvantula all used Thunderbolt, causing the mighty Regigigas to stagger…but not fall.

"RE! GI! GIG! AS!"

He grabbed me directly with surprising speed.

"Shit!" I screamed. I unleashed Aggron directly on Regigigas's face, but Regigigas was too focused now. He threw me into the nearby rubble before knocking away Aggron.

"AAAAGH!"

I skidded across the rocks, tumbling and rolling before stopping. Immediately, even though it was incredibly painful, I looked back up, and saw Breloom launching Focus Punch after seeing a clear shot. Regigas tumbled, and then everyone used the opportunity to swarm him en masse with all their monsters.

* * *

Ethan walked over to me, and held out his hand.

"Quite a fight."

I grinned. "Yup."

I stood up, but immediately fell back down.

"Agh!"

Ethan caught me, but gasped as I fell into his arms.

"I'm a bit woozy. No biggie."

"May…your chest…"

I looked down to see a fairly large chunk of rock jutting out of my shirt. I tried to sweep it away with my hand, but not only would it not budge, I felt a searing pain upon trying to move it.

And that's when I realized it wasn't in my shirt.

It was in my body.

* * *

 ** _Mid-chapter POV Flip!_** ** _(Red's perspective)_**

* * *

I stumbled over to my friends, thankfully without too much injury. I moved to them as quickly as I could on my injured knees, and surveyed the area. Regigigas laid on the ground, defeated, but as I moved to touch it, it began to…melt.

Quickly, the entire mass of Regigigas melted down into a strange, red goo, and in the center of it all was a small purple mass, seemingly attached forcibly to the rest of the monster.

"Ditto…" It mumbled before falling dead.

I took a picture of it with my smartphone before staggering over to everyone else.

"H-hey guys. What's our status?" I asked. Ethan turned to me.

"Oh, thank Arceus that you're okay at least!" he shouted before hugging me.

I pushed him off. "'At. Least?'"

He paused, and his eyes betrayed his fear. "May…"

I immediately shoved him aside and pushed my way to May. She had a multitude of cuts and bruises all over her body, but worst of all, a large rock poked out of her sternum.

"No no nononononono….." I began to mumble.

May turned to me, smiling weakly. "Ah…it's not…so…b-bad…"

Serena gulped. "W-we can…we can fix her…right guys?"

Nate turned to Serena, paused, and then shook his head slowly.

"The damage is too severe. Not even a Pokémon Center could heal her—"

"I have a way!" I sputtered. Everyone looked at me.

"We're all ears."

"Follow me. Now!" I shouted. I began walking into the Viridian Forest, and the others all carried May along.

We walked along a tree lined path for several minutes. I could hear them whispering about me, about how I've snapped, about how I'm leading them into the forest for nothing. But I couldn't be distracted. I had to find _her._

 _"No nononono NO NO NO NO! I WILL NOT FAIL YOU! DO YOU HEAR ME?"_

Eventually, we arrived at a wooden house.

"Red…"

I knocked on the door.

"…."

"…"

"….."

A small girl came out, one I recognized.

"R-Red!" she squeaked.

"Hello, Yellow. I need your help."

* * *

 ** _To Be Continued…._**

* * *

 ** _…_**

 ** _Chapter 10, coming up! But damn! This chapter was easily the hardest so far. I didn't have a very clear vision of what would happen exactly in this chapter. All I knew was:_**

· **_Fight Rockets_**

· **_Legendary Attack_**

· **_Not Actually Legendary_**

· **_May Injured_**

· **_Introduce Yellow_**

 ** _And while that is the main outline, I usually have a better idea of the details too._**

 ** _…_**

 ** _Anyway, thanks for reading, and for now, I take my leave…_**

 ** _…_**

 ** _…_**

 ** _…_**

 ** _…but only for a bit._**


	10. We do what we have To

**_We do what we have To (Wally's Perspective)_**

Wally's Team: Gallade/Talonflame/Roserade/Garchomp/Azumaril/Magnezone

* * *

*BEEEEP!* *BEEEEP!* *BEEEEP!*

I pressed the off button on the alarm clock as I rolled out of bed. I stretched my arms, letting out a big yawn before opening the window. It was a beautiful, sunny day, and just the right temperature outside.

 _"Ah! What a nice morning!"_

I walked downstairs, from my room, to greet all my Pokemon on the bottom floor. Gallade was sweeping the floor, and Talonflame was flying outside.

"Good morning, everyone!" I greeted. Gallade looked up at me and smiled.

I turned the corner to see Magnezone sulking in the corner.

"Magnezone? What's wrong?"

"Zoooooooone." He beeped, looking at something behind me.

I turned my head to see my computer, fried by Magnezone's magnetic field.

"Oh no! That's the third time this month!"

I sighed, and patted Magnezone on the head.

"Buddy, we need to find a solution for this."

"Mag…neeee…"

I ate a quick breakfast (I wanted to train in the Safari Zone today) before getting a call from Brendan. I quickly answered; we hadn't spoken in forever!

"Hiya, Brendan! What's up?" I chimed.

"Wally," he began, panicked, "I need your help."

He paused to take a breath before continuing.

"Listen, did you hear that May went to fight Team Rocket in Kanto?"

"Um…no. She did? Is she OK?"

"I don't know!" Brendan was almost shouting now.

I paused, anxious. "O-ok…"

"I think she's been captured by Team Rocket. I saw on the news that she was injured, but I couldn't find her or even contact her after they finished fighting."

"W-what?!"

"But I have a plan! Meet me at Professor Birch's Lab!"

I found myself nodding fiercely, even though Brendan was only on the phone. "Got it! I'll be there immediately!"

After hanging up, I put all my Pokémon into their Pokeballs except for Talonflame.

"Talonflame! Carry me to Littleroot Town!"

"Taloooon!"

* * *

With his mighty claws, he carried me, and we were off like a missile.

We touched down right outside Birch's lab; As a matter of fact, we _almost_ crashed into it. It was my fault, mostly. I think my panic was distracting Talonflame.

Regardless, I turned to my bird Pokémon.

"Good job." I said, nodding while stroking his feathers. He cawed quietly, and I put him back into his Pokeball.

Immediately, I ran in to the lab. I began running straight at the door, and to the back of the roo—

"Oomph!"

I ran right into the Pokémon Professor, and nearly fell backward onto the floor.

"Sorry, Professor Birch…" I squeaked. I turned away a bit before straightening myself out.

The Professor nodded. "Don't worry about it. For now, we need your help."

"What do you need?"

Brendan wheeled in a futuristic-looking suit of powered armor. It was mostly black, with white arms and green striping on the center of the chest piece. It seemed to have some sort of arm cannons and a facemask that looked like a breathing apparatus.

"Um…"

"Wally, do you remember my Magma Suit? The one I used to help me get to Groudon?"

I nodded.

"This used to be that. Birch and I modified it for you."

I nodded again, more slowly this time. "Um…what for?"

Brendan took a deep breath before answering. "Listen, I would go save May myself, but I have to stay here to protect Max. I want you to save her, and that suit will protect you."

My eyes widened with surprise.

"The suit has been outfitted with pulse rays to knock out foes, and is durable enough to eat bullets! I also added a breathing mask, just in case your acute bronchitis acts up." Birch explained.

"For what it's worth, the mask will also disguise your identity." Brendan added.

I began shaking my head. "Whoa, guys, slow down! You want me to wear _that_ to fight Team Rocket? That's—"

"Insane, I know. But _May needs your help!_ "

I paused.

 _"One of my best friends…counting on me…"_

"…"

"…"

"…"

"…I'll do it."

* * *

Birch helped me get the suit onto a plane without tipping anyone off, and I flew to the Kanto Region. Once there, I put on the suit for the first time.

 _"This…feels right."_

It was an incredible piece of technology, and I was eager to try it out. I punched a nearby tree, just to see if I could.

*THWACK*

The tree fell over, broken in two.

"…"

"…That's awesome!" I exclaimed, before the Beedrill living in that tree attacked.

"OH NO NOT THE BEEDRILL! NOOOO!"

* * *

After I recovered (without too much injury, thanks to the suit) from the wrath of the bees, Birch helped me track May over the phone.

"Listen, I can track her Pokedex, and your suit! I'll help you get closer to her."

So, he gave me directions. He knew where she was, and guided me there in a slow but effective process.

"Keep going north! You're really close!"

I trotted around the forest I ended up in, and it was hard not to take in the scenery. Kanto was a beautiful region, with quite a few awesome Pokémon.

 _"Wish I wasn't here on business…"_

I moved through the thick grass and tall trees before I happened upon a large, wooden house. It looked rather…odd, even in this forest. Despite its natural structure, it struck me as out of place.

"Wally, she's only a teeny bit further! See where they might be holding her?"

 _"That makes sense. It's the Rocket base."_

"Yes, sir," I replied "and I'm going to sign out until I'm done."

I took a deep breath.

"W-wish me luck!"

"Godspeed, Wally." He answered. He then hung up, and it was all up to me.

* * *

I travelled around the perimeter of the house first, trying to get a good understanding of the exits and entrances. I mean, that's what they do in all the movies, right? The house was big, with three sets of windows, a side door, and a front door, all places for me to go in and out.

"Let's use the window…" I mumbled to myself. I began to approach it.

*cli-CLICK*

I froze in place.

"Just who the hell are you?" A boy said.

I put my hands in the air and slowly turned around, not saying a word. He held a rifle in his hands. He looked rather young, and wore a red jacket with a black hat bearing a single golden stripe.

I stared at him for a moment, but he just kinda smirked. "Not the talkative type, eh?"

"…."

He continued. "I think it's best if you come with me."

I bit my tongue before taking a deep breath.

"Sorry, but I got a job to do."

I jumped at him, making a mad leap for the gun he was holding.

*BLAM BLAM BLAM*

I tumbled to the ground, but found I was unharmed by the bullets.

"…"

I aimed my arm cannon at him, and fired.

*BWEEN!*

"UGH!" the boy yelped before collapsing on the ground.

I took a look at him, and the attack seemed to affect him like a taser would; he was shaking and paralyzed.

"Hope you're comfortable…" I quipped. As I walked away, a wide, cheesy grin spread across my face. However, I sent out Magnezone and Roserade to my side.

"Keep a lookout, guys."

They both nodded, and we continued to the window. I pressed against it lightly at first, before pausing.

"…"

I punched the window, shattering it into a million pieces with extreme ease.

Knowing the sound would attract attention, I began to pick up the pace. I ran inside, and ducked inside a closet. From inside, I heard two more people run across the hall.

"We have a problem." A cold voice announced.

"ETHAN!" A higher, female voice yelped. I heard her run outside, likely to the guy I took down.

"Whoever did this is probably inside…" A deeper female voice suggested. I then heard someone walk up to the closet door.

It opened.

*BWEEN!* *BLAM!*

A brown haired boy with a gun shot at me, but to no avail, and he fell to the ground. Roserade skated around me, to my right, and tripped a blonde hair girl who was reaching for her Pokeball while I turned to my left, and pointed my cannon.

A blue haired girl was there, and began backing away. "RED! WE GOT A—"

*BWEEN!*

I turned back around, and Magnezone wrapped up the other girl in metal, while Roserade wrapped her up in vines.

I smiled. "Nice work, you two! Now, please return."

I sent them back to their Pokeballs and sent out Garchomp and Azumaril in their stead.

"Alright guys, there's at least one more person in he—"

*WHACK!*

I tumbled to the ground, dizzy, as the bar hit me in the back of the head. I turned fully around to see a dark haired man wearing a red hat.

"DIE!" he growled. He swung again, but Azumaril knocked him across the room. He immediately recovered and sent in Lapras and Vileplume to deal with my Pokemon. He then turned back to me.

"Who do you think you ARE, coming HERE?!" He screamed. He swung yet again, but I caught the bar with my hand.

I squeezed.

The bar snapped under the strength of the suit.

"What the…" the man mumbled before backflipping away. He grabbed a gun off the table and fired.

*BANG BANG BANG BANG*

I raised an arm in from of my face, shielding it from the attacks. Charging in, I tackled the man in red to the ground.

"HYAA!" I roared as I fired a pulse beam into his chest.

*BWEEEN!*

"G-g-g…" he managed. I rolled off of him, and took a deep breath.

"Phew! He scared me! You guys okay—"

I turned to see Garchomp and Azumaril knocked out.

"Well…that sucks…"

I returned them, and sent out Gallade.

"MEGA EVOLVE!"

"GAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

I felt the power of our bond pulsing throughout both of us as an energy surge enveloped and transformed my partner into his Mega form.

"Use Psycho Cut on Vileplume!"

Gallade's attack moved unseen, like dust in the wind, and Vileplume fell, defeated.

Smirking now, I turned to Lapras, who was leaping to Gallade.

"On your right! Close Combat!"

Gallade turned, weaving out of the way of an Ice Beam, and unleashed a flurry of blows upon Lapras, knocking it out.

"Nice! You're amazing, Gallade!"

"Gall!" He smiled in approval.

We approached the back of the house together. May was tied down to some sort of medical table, asleep. There was a small, blonde-haired girl on the nearby couch, also asleep, but I decided not to bother her; if she slept through all the fighting, she must be really tired…

I sent out Talonflame.

"Talonflame!" he cawed.

"Listen, I want you to carry May. If we get jumped by anyone, I want you to immediately fly her to Professor Oak in Pallet Town, which is the second major town south of here." I ordered.

"Tal…Flame." he complained, shaking his head.

I smiled. "I know you want to keep me safe, but don't worry; Gallade's got my back."

Talonflame finally nodded, and, after I cut the straps holding her, grabbed May.

"Mission accomplished!" I cheered.

* * *

 ** _Mid-Chapter POV flip! (Red's perspective)_**

* * *

It was a miracle that Yellow was able to save May with her powers, though I think she'll be asleep for days. It was a relief that we were able to hold out here after such a brutal battle. And it was amazing that we were all readily accepted.

So naturally, it had to go horribly, horribly wrong somehow.

I barely managed to move my arm, but I dug a Paralyze Heal out of my bag.

 _"Dangerous…for…humans…but I…gotta…try…."_

I injected it into my arm.

*COUGH* *hack*

Slowly but surely, I found myself able to get up off the ground. I staggered a bit, but caught myself, and took a quick look around. The doors seemed to suggest he went to…May.

 _"No!"_

I charged through the first door, but stopped at the second. Whatever suit this person was wearing, it had taser-like weapons and offered superhuman strength. I couldn't take him on in a direct fight. I needed a new angle…

 _"…"_

* * *

I went outside, and identified the path he took to get here. Since he believes everyone is stunned and unable to act, he doubtless will feel confident in taking the same route back.

"Go, Charizard and Hitmonlee."

The two Pokemon leaped out of their capsules, and turned to me.

"I need you guys to hide behind trees on either side of this path, okay? When a suspicious man walks by, break down the trees on him!"

They looked at me a bit confused, but complied all the same. Charizard took a tree on the left, while Hitmonlee went on the right. I hid on the right as well, behind a different, smaller tree.

Then we waited.

 _"…"_

 _"…"  
"…where are you?"_

I began to grow anxious. What if he took a different path? Then May is gone, and so is this assassin. I felt myself trembling slightly, gnawing my teeth and tapping my fingers.

 _"Oh god oh god oh god oh god…"_

And then I heard whistling.

The assailant strutted down the road, unnervingly carefree. He seemed smug, or perhaps simply deranged. I waited for him to get a little closer.

"…NOW!" I yelled. Charizard and Hitmonlee sprang into action. The trees fell.

*SLAM!*

I moved out, and he was crushed underneath the weight. The trees hurt him, but his suit kept him alive.

He slowly turned his head to face me, and I glowered at him.

"What're you gonna do now, prick?"

He paused.

"TALONFLAME, GET OUT OF HERE! GALLADE, ATTACK CHARIZARD!" he screamed. Suddenly, I saw a Talonflame fly away, carrying May in his claws.

"Charizard, go—"

A Mega Gallade used Psycho Cut on Charizard, knocking him away from Talonflame.

"NO! NO! DAMNIT DAMNIT DAMNIT!" I roared. Charizard and Hitmonlee dealt with Gallade while I turned to the assailant.

"RAAAGH!"

*WHAM*

I punched him in the face twice, then punched the ground. He was unconscious by that point, but I was furious.

"Shit…oh god…May…"

I began bawling into my hands.

"I'm…sorry I *sniff* c-couldn't save…you…DAMNIT!"

* * *

A few hours passed before everyone woke up. In that time, I removed the assailant's suit, locked him to a chair in the basement, and healed all my wounded Pokémon. I checked on Yellow specifically, who was also asleep, to make sure she was alright. Thankfully, she still snoozed peacefully on the couch.

 _"He must not have noticed her."_

Once everyone was awake, I explained the situation to them. They were all taken aback by the events. How did Team Rocket even find us? Nobody had any idea.

"…"

Serena was the first to speak up.

"Okay, so let's do something about it. Has the culprit said anything?"

"No; he's still unconscious." I answered.

"Well," Ethan chimed in, "the important thing is that we have him. We can question him."

"Exactly! Never give up on hope." Serena finished.

Dawn frowned. "Do you think he'll talk?"

"Highly probable. The fact he felt he needed a suit means his will likely isn't strong, though he could just be a realistic type." Nate explained.

"He'll still need…y'know…'motivation'." Ethan commented. Nate immediately jumped back at the idea.

"We'll try bribing him. We should NOT resort to torture tactics."

Ethan cocked an eyebrow at the vehement opposition. "Didn't you do this all the time at your government job?"

Dawn glared at him. "Why do you think he so opposed, cretin?!"

Ethan paused, before biting his tounge.

"Serena, what do you think?" I asked.

She looked down for a bit before looking at me. "I like being adventurous and all, but this…isn't what I had in mind…"

"Let's just take a vote. All in favor of torture tactics?" Ethan asked. He raised his hand in the air.

"…"

It was soon followed by mine, though while he considered it through pragmatism, I considered it through rage.

Nate crossed his arms. He seemed very uneasy. He turned to Serena, who shifted in her chair awkwardly.

Then, Dawn raised her hand.

"Lady Berlitz?" Nate began. His voice quavered a bit, shocked.

"I don't think it's the right thing to do, but I think it's the only option." Dawn answered.

"…"

"…then let's get started." I snarled.

* * *

I entered the basement alongside Ethan. We were planning to good-cop-bad-cop the assailant. We marched down the stairs, and he turned his head to us the moment we entered the room. He seemed frightened, but undeterred. Looking at him now, he was shockingly young-looking and quite physically small. He had green hair and white clothes. By all accounts, he should have been an innocent child.

But to me, he was a putrid monstrosity.

I stared at him with angry eyes, but Ethan just began talking.

"Heya, buddy. You've been causing us some trouble."

The assailant smiled weakly. "Y-yeah, well…that was kinda the idea."

"Listen, we can settle this like adults, right? Just tell us where you took May, and you can get off scot-free." Ethan put on a warm smile. I think he was angry as I was, but he hid it better.

"It's a generous offer, so please forgive me for refusing. Thanks though."

Ethan frowned a bit before continuing.

"You sure? This could get…messy, otherwise."

The assailant wasn't stupid; his face betrayed his fear at the prospect. He did not, however, cave in. "Well…that seems pretty…uh…bad. But, y'know…I got people to protect." He gave a weak, if worried, smile.

Ethan let out a very audible sigh. "Look…if you don't cooperate, then my buddy here will 'persuade' you. And you don't want that. I'm much more frien—"

"Please don't insult me with good-cop-bad-cop." The assailant interrupted, "I've seen too many movies for it to be effective."

Ethan paused, a bit surprised, before turning to me.

"Welp, I've done all I could." He patted me on the shoulder. "Have fun."

He left for the stairs, and I was alone with the assailant.

I turned to him, and, almost without thought, meatily shoved him into the wall.

"Now listen to me, you god-damn piece of shit. You're going to tell me where you took May, or I'm going to hurt you. BADLY. You got it?"

He stared me directly in the eyes. "No."

"What?!"

"I s-said…no!"

I punched him across the face.

"Wrong answer." I bit. I grabbed his head and turned it towards me.

"Where is she?!"

"N-not t-tell-ling."

I clocked him across the jaw, flinging his head upward.

"WHERE IS SHE?!"

"N-not TELLING!"

I smashed his face into the wall, tore it away from the wall and punched it.

"START TALKING!"

He began to cough up blood, but just shook his head.

"RRAAGH!"

I kicked him in the chest, grabbed him, and punched him and punched him and punched him and PUNCHED him because no one will ever hurt my fucking friends again!

I grabbed him, and held his face near mine.

"WHERE?!"

"G-go…"

I paused to hear him out.

"Go…fuck…y-yourself."

"RRRRRRAAAAAAAAAA!"

I roared like a beast, and as I continued to wail on him, questioning him quickly fell into the back of my mind.

* * *

 ** _Mid Chapter POV Flip! (May's Perspective)_**

* * *

I woke up in a lab. A familiar Talonflame was perched on a nearby chair, and an older professor was working in the back.

"Geez…" I moaned. I sat myself upright, and the professor walked over to me.

"Ah! Hello, May! I am Professor Oak. How are you feeling?"

I put my hand on my chest, where the giant-ass rock used to be, but it was gone. I paused, but decided to ask later.

"Pretty good, actually." I answered. I looked around, but Red, Ethan and the others were nowhere to be seen.

"Hey, how did I get here?"

"Well…"

Suddenly, a phone began ringing. I recognized the number; it was Brendan's.

"Ah! He can explain everything." Professor Oak replied. He handed me the phone.

"Brendan?"

I heard a huge sigh of relief on the other side of the line.

"Oh thank Arceus! I thought you were done for!" His warmth and sincerity were nice, but something was bugging me.

"Um…why? Cause of the big rock in my chest?"

"What?! You were impaled?!"

I paused. There was a lot of information missing…

"Okay there, four-eyes. Let's start with why YOU thought I was in danger."

"Well, Professor Birch and I both were certain you'd been captured by Team Rocket, so we sent Wally to save you."

My eyes widened.

"So let me get this straight:"

"Hmm?"

"You sent Wally in to save me. ALONE. Assuming that anyone with me was Team Rocket?" The last people I was with were my friends! They carried me before I blacked out…

Brendan paused. "Well, we also gave him a bionic suit…."

"WHAT?!"

"Yeah!" He sounded _so_ damn proud of himself.

"Well, have you heard back from Wally?!"

"Not yet, but I'm sure he's—"

"GOD DAMN SON OF A BITCH!" I screamed. Immediately, I ended the call, hopped onto Flygon, and turned to Talonflame, which was obviously Wally's.

"Take me back to where you left him! NOW!"

I followed the bird Pokémon to a house in Viridian Forest. Immediately, I broke down the door. Nate, Dawn, Serena, and Ethan were all standing right there, and there jaws dropped at seeing me.

"May! You're —"

"Where?!"

Ethan immediately pointed me to the basement, and as I rushed down the stairs, my heart began to pound.

"WHERE IS SHE?! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH HER?!" I heard Red scream. His voice resounded with anger, but he also seemed to be crying, like he was doing something he regrette—

I saw Wally, bloodied and battered, lying on the ground, and Red standing over him.

"W-wally…" I squeaked. Red turned to me.

His eyes widened. He looked at me, then back at Wally, then back at me again.

"Wait…"

His eyes widened even further. Immediately, he picked up Wally, and ran him upstairs. Shoving everybody aside, he placed Wally on a medical bed, and hooked him up to several devices. He began to pace around frantically before finally collapsing on the floor.

"Oh god…o-oh…god…." He started mumbling. He curled up into a ball, whispering incomprehensible gibberish to himself.

I rushed over to Wally's side. He was sleeping….

"Wally….oh god Wally…!"

I began to cry. My tears ran down my face, and coated the floor with water.

"I'm so sorry…please be okay…please be okay…."

I held him gently. This…this just shouldn't have happened…

 _"God…why?"_

* * *

 ** _To Be Continued…_**

* * *

 ** _…_**

 ** _And that concluded the three-issue extravaganza! I do hope you enjoyed it!_**

 ** _Chapter 9 was a story-centric chapter. It was meant to establish the real dangerous aspects of Team Rocket, as well as the strength of everyone when coordinating. If you're scratching your head at the whole Ditto thing…don't worry. That will be explained…._**

 ** _…eventually._**

 ** _Chapter 10, meanwhile, helped me establish the lengths Red is willing to go to when push comes to shove. He doesn't want to torture people, but if it's the only option, he won't hesitate. It also let me introduce Wally, who doesn't really need to be in this but screw you, he is._**

 ** _The whole "armored suit" thing is my more badass take on the Respirator suit from the Ruby and Sapphire Manga. I just thought "Y'know what this fanfic needs? IRON MAN!"_**

 ** _Also, I started using POV flips in 9 and 10 because I felt like they let the story flow better. I hope it wasn't hard to follow._**

 ** _Finally, I know Yellow has done literally nothing so far. But don't worry; she'll get huge roles in chapter 11._**

 ** _Also, OVERWATCH! Holy shit! I'm planning a fanfic based on this awesome game. It's about Zenyatta, Zarya, Genji, Mercy, and Bastion (But mostly Zenyatta and Zarya) learning to live with each other, getting over fears of omnics, all while fighting a new threat from Talon._**

 ** _I might even ship 'em, y'know? I mean, Zen and Zar are a brains and brawn duo. (If I do ship them, it'll be a 'slow burn', if you will)_**

 ** _That won't come till later, though. I might put out the first chapter soon, but I'm going to finish Unraveling before I work on that._**

 ** _…_**

 ** _As always, thanks for reading, and for now, I take my leave._**


End file.
